I’ve not given up on Sporting Kansas City (completely), despite the lack of writing about them. I was on holiday for a few weeks, and I no longer take a laptop with me on my travels. I truly try to disconnect, although I did weigh in on Sporting’s transfer business via Bluesky.

The break was much needed. I nearly completely zoned out of football. I travelled to Norway for a few days, where I spent time running along the harbour of Sandefjord, relaxing on a sandy fjord beach, sitting in stifling floating saunas, and enjoying glacial plunge pools in the sea.

I flew home just in time to see one of my favourite bands, A Wilhelm Scream, crush it in Manchester before packing up the car with family and dogs for a week-long stay at a lodge/resort in the woods. There, I spent time cycling gravel trails (I had just one bike wreck), hitting the fitness suite every day, and watching La Vuelta a España. When you get to a certain age, you fall in love with three things: BBQing, World War II documentaries, and cycling.

I had a busy few weeks, and so did Sporting Kansas City. My trip helped me forget about the awful performances of Sporting. Still rock bottom of the league. Still on pace for a club-record-setting bad season.

Sporting have been busy

David Lee and company did not sit idly by, however, as the goals conceded and losses continued to pile up. The Andre Luiz transfer was confirmed, and the player arrived in Kansas City. The club smashed their previous transfer record by some margin to sign Andre Luiz from Olympiacos for $18 million plus add-ons. The winger is certainly explosive, at least he looks it in training playing against teammates.

Within hours of announcing Andre Luiz’s signing, if my timeline is correct, Sporting Kansas City mutually agreed to part ways with midfielder Manu Garcia. Not only did the club allow the designated player to leave for free, having spent $5 million on him 18 months ago, but Sporting had to buy him out of his contract. Garcia increasingly didn’t want to be at the club — I don’t blame him — and the club didn’t want him either.

Garcia subsequently returned to his former club, the one ex-Sporting director Mike Burns signed him from, Aris. The departures didn’t stop there. Lee shocked every Sporting Kansas City supporter by selling designated player, captain, and leading scorer Dejan Joveljic to the Seattle Sounders.

How did Joveljic celebrate joining Seattle, a team fighting for a playoff spot instead of being last in MLS? The striker scored a brace, leading the Sounders to a 2-2 draw with the Chicago Fire.

Sporting are now in the market for a new striker because, let’s be truthful, Taylor Calheira isn’t up to the MLS level. The club have no other striker, although Calvin Harris or Capita could be thrust into the position. Sure, Shapi played as a striker against the Vancouver Whitecaps in Sporting KC’s last match. It was a disaster. A 3-0 loss, with Sporting failing to register a shot on target.

Sporting have lost 35 matches in MLS since the start of the 2025 regular season. No team in MLS has lost more matches in that time. In 2025, interim coach Kerry Zavagnin recorded seven wins compared to Raphael Wicky’s four in 2026. No progress.

Finally, a midfielder

While the exits of two designated players made headlines, Sporting Kansas City were able to make positive headlines with another player signing. The club sent $7.6 million to Austin FC for midfielder Owen Wolff. Finally, after months of me telling David Lee the club needed another MLS-quality midfielder, he gets a deal done. Jacob Bartlett and Jake Davis have not been the answer.

Wolff is just 21. He is a midfielder the team can build around for the next few seasons. Indeed, he has been a professional since 2021, when he was 16. Wolff is one of those young players who MLS teams throw into action at an early age. Most sink rather than swim. Sporting Kansas City have had plenty of those players recently. Fortunately, Wolff has mostly swum, playing for a usually poor Austin team.

A lot of reports incorrectly called Wolff a No. 10. Seems a lot of Austin fans and MLS writers aren’t sure what a No. 10 is. Wolff is most certainly a No. 6 who can play as a No. 8. His defensive contributions and touches are in the 90th percentile, while his shot attempts are in the 2nd percentile, with chances created placing him in the 60th percentile. Wolff is a defensive midfielder.

I can hear the voices shouting, “He scored seven goals and assisted seven in MLS in 2025!”

That is what we call an outlier. The 2025 season saw Wolff score more than two goals for the first time and tally more than three assists. Bear in mind I’m looking at assist stats from statistical platforms that aren’t MLS’s website. MLS’s official stats count an assist for the player who makes the pass to the player who actually assists the goal. I don’t know of any major or medium-sized league that does that.

Sporting KC desperately needed a No. 6 to play in midfield alongside Lasse Berg Johnsen. Wolff could be the perfect partner for the Norwegian. Sporting don’t need a 10, which is an obsession of MLS fans, writers, and GMs. The team have pacey wingers. Those are your creative players. Pair those wingers with two No. 8s that can get forward into the attack in a 4-3-3 formation and you’ve got a dangerous team. You can play similarly in a 4-4-2.

The old-school idea of the No. 10, like Lionel Messi, isn’t needed or even realistic. Manu Garcia, for example, was often a luxury player. No defensive contributions. Yes, he was capable of playing brilliant passes, but a No. 6 needed to get him the ball. A No. 8 needed to do his running and cover for him. Add Garcia and Joveljic together and you’ve got two players who struggled to get behind the ball and defend.

Wolff is a good signing. But…

Wolff is a good signing. Yet, he is injured. The midfielder has played just eight times in MLS in 2026 for a grand total of 478 minutes, or an average of 47.25 minutes per game. Zero goals. Zero assists.

An ankle injury has recently kept him out of action. Previously, Wolff missed the start of the campaign after hernia surgery. Could being thrust into playing men’s football as a 16-year-old be causing injuries?

Austin seemed happy to sell him. Although it isn’t often that an MLS team pays another $7.6 million for a player.

The MLS transfer window closes today — it may be closed by the time you read this. Although Sporting KC are linked with at least one striker, Paulos Abraham, anything can happen.

This may age badly, but I don’t expect the deal to get done. What I do expect is Calheira to finish out the MLS season as Sporting KC’s starting No. 9 or Lee to snatch up an MLS journeyman striker.

The rebuild still isn’t working

Despite the signings and departures since the start of the season, Sporting Kansas City are no better than they were at this time last campaign. As we know, they are worse.

This is the issue with blowing up your squad and saying you’re going to have a rebuild. This is the problem with letting go so many players at the end of a season and expecting to sign better and improve. If I remember correctly, Sporting allowed 14 players to leave at the end of last season.

Sporting still need an upgrade at goalkeeper. They now need a No. 9. A fit-every-week, or nearly every week, right-back would be good, too. Also, they need a better coach, because nothing I’ve seen from Raphael Wicky since the start of the season shows this team is improving.

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Yes, I feel like things are going around and around, yet the same results are continuing to occur. Once again, Sporting Kansas City were on the losing end on Saturday night, this time falling 2-0 to the Colorado Rapids. It was the third straight game in which Sporting KC failed to score. The press conference was like a funeral, with head coach Raphael Wicky looking like a defeated man. There’s far more grey in the beard than there was eight months ago.

Wicky looks like a coach who has no clue what to do and has lost the dressing room. From the excitement of what could happen to the depths of despair.

This isn’t about figuring out what’s wrong with Sporting Kansas City anymore—although I could have told you back in February. We know what’s wrong. This is about acknowledging just how bad things have become. It’s about acknowledging that every decision made in 2026 has been the wrong one, and now, telling the fans another rebuild is in order.

Rock bottom is here

The 2026 rebuild has been handled poorly, although that isn’t necessarily general manager David Lee’s fault. There was so little in place when he took over, it feels almost inevitable that success would be elusive.

I do think Lee let too many players leave after their contracts expired at the end of 2025, making it difficult to get enough players signed to replace them. It wasn’t just about numbers. It was about replacing the quality those players possessed. Not many footballers want to join a team or club this bad.

Sporting Kansas City still lack numbers, and when players were signed, I think things were done piecemeal. There hasn’t been an attempt to address the centre of midfield outside of Lasse Berg Johnsen.

There’s also been a belief that the homegrown players are far better than they actually are.

Sporting are completely imbalanced. They have a lot of players who can play certain positions, but not necessarily players who can play those positions well, while there is a lack of players in other areas. A lot of defenders on paper, a lack of central midfielders, and two strikers. One of those strikers scores goes when he gets the ball. The other is a USL Championship-level player. The step from the USL Championship to MLS is a massive one.

Serious questions should be asked about Wicky. Let’s be clear, Sporting KC have rarely looked like the energetic, quick attacking team I saw in preseason. Instead, the team has mostly looked like one with no ideas about how to attack.

I seriously question what training looks like. Perhaps this is why the social media team doesn’t post anything from training. Or perhaps it’s because the social media team is so clueless about soccer that it finds it more important to post about the World Cup being held in Kansas City than about the club it represents.

Seriously, Sporting KC and the KC Current are living on the fact that Kansas City hosted some World Cup matches. The world has moved on. No one cares. It befuddles me. I’m unaware of any other team bragging about hosting some World Cup matches. Forgive me if I’m wrong. By bragging about host the World Cup matches, Kansas City’s teams are telling everyone that their clubs are small potatoes.

Wicky’s tactics simply don’t work with the players he has. I’m not sure how well they’d work with better players either. There is no attacking edge. Sporting KC rank bottom in a myriad of attacking metrics.

Sporting are last in:

• goals per match with 0.9

• xG with 17.0

• shots on target per match with 3.9

• accurate crosses per match 2.3

• set piece goals with 0

Meanwhile, Sporting are:

• 29th in goals conceded per match with 2.5

• 28th in average possession with 43.2%

• 29th in big chances created with 32

• 28th in big chances missed with 21

• 29th in touches in the opposition box with 354

• 29th in corners with 65

These metrics show us that Sporting Kansas City are the worst in nearly all meaningful attacking metrics. It also shows that the people coaching this team aren’t able to set out a game model that can produce consistent, quality attacking football.

Lee is a high-level front-office executive. What is happening in Kansas City shows just how well he did with New York City FC.

However, there is a caveate to his time in the Big Apple. Lee had City Football Groups’ connections to help with scouting across the globe. NYCFC did well under his watch, but the club won just one MLS Cup.

Let’s be clear, NYCFC’s Cup win came thanks to a team built by Lee on top of a strong foundation created by his predecessor, Claudio Reyna. CFG has scouts within it that can and do recommend players to its various clubs. If the scouts identify a player, but that player isn’t good enough for Manchester City, then they can be recommended to the other clubs.

I expect many of the players who joined NYCFC under Reyna and Lee to have been recommended to them by the scouts and data crunchers. I’ve no evidence of this. However, if you have a big network, like CFG do, then it makes sense that player scouting would be shared amongst the clubs.

Going to Sporting Kansas City shows just how different things are. Not only do you have the backing of CFG, but you’re located in New York City. You’ve had winning seasons. Allof those reasons will attract players.

You can’t attract high-quality players to Kansas City with BBQ and promises of things getting better. The parity in MLS says Sporting KC will bounce back. Or does it? It is getting more difficult with more spending and more ambitious clubs in MLS for teams like Sporting to bounce back and maintain consistency.

How difficult will it be for the remainder of the transfer window and the next transfer window to convince players to join the worst club in the league? By the way, even with signing defenders this season, Sporting KC are on tap to concede 85 goals. That’s 15 more goals than last season, when we all though that was the worst Sporting Kansas City defence of all time. By the way, the record of most goals allowed in a single season is 75 set by FC Cincinnati in 2019. Sporting are about to smash that record.

Raphael Wicky isn’t the solution

Back to Wicky. His contract ends in the summer of 2028, following the league’s first summer-to-spring season. I was confused. I believed his contract was to expire after the spring season.

Wicky was never likely to continue after the 2027-28 season. He felt like a transitional coach.

I assume the very few people who were still employed by Sporting KC at the end of 2025 expected things to go this badly in 2026.

Forget the rock-bottom offensive statistics for a moment. Sporting Kansas City are now bottom of the table with 14 points from 19 games. They’ve conceded the joint-most goals with 48. Orlando City were the clear favourite to concede the most, yet they’ve got better.

Sporting KC probably won’t sack Wicky. The club, as there is no relegation or sporting punishment for being this bad, will keep him for now. It’s one less person to try to replace.

Sporting KC players, on the other hand, aren’t getting better. Wicky nor his staff are developing players. Everyone is regressing. Sacking Wicky and replacing him with assistant Dominic Kinnear doesn’t scream improvement. While Kinnear was a successful MLS head coach, those successes came in 2006 and 2007 when he won the MLS Cup. It’s an extremely different league today.

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Before the new Premier League season starts, and I publish my predictions for the new campaign, I think it is important to revisit my forecast for each of the league’s 20 teams from 2025-26.

This time last summer, I published a Drew FC prediction for each team, giving my expert thoughts on what would occur over the course of the 38-game season. Well, a few things I got right, a few I got wrong, and some were just complete misses.

So, let’s look back at the predictions I made last summer, coincidentally published on the same day, August 15. Then, keep your eye out for my predictions ahead of the 2026-27 Premier League campaign.

Arsenal

What I wrote:

Mikel Arteta will continue to tell anyone within earshot that Arsenal are the best team in the world, despite once again having nothing shiny to prove it. They’ll flirt with silverware, but when the pressure’s on, expect the usual fainting fit.

Reality: Arsenal won the Premier League, although they lost two cup finals.

Aston Villa

What I wrote:

Unai Emery will work tirelessly to repeat last year’s heroics, but with PSR breathing down their necks and no marquee signings, expect a step backwards. The Europa League will take its toll, and the Villains may find themselves waving goodbye to European football altogether next season.

Reality: Aston Villa struggled to start the season, but things corrected as the campaign wore on. Not only did Emery lead the team to a fourth-place finish, but Aston Villa won the Europa League.

Bournemouth

What I wrote:

Andoni Iraola is a fine manager, but he’ll need a miracle with that backline after the summer exodus. With a history of injuries and fewer proven defenders, expect the Cherries to wobble but not enough for relegation.

Reality: Bournemouth didn’t wobble despite selling players before and during the season, and having a large number of injuries throughout. Not only did Bournemouth not get relegated, but they finished sixth, qualifying for Europe for the first time. Iraola subsequently left the club at the end of his contract and joined Liverpool.

Brighton

What I wrote:

The Seagulls will circle the top four early on before settling comfortably into the European spots. They’ll continue to pluck wonderkids from the global bargain bin, but that leaky defence (59 conceded last season) could once again be the rock in the shoe.

Reality: The defence was good enough, allowing Brighton to finish eighth and qualify for the Conference League playoff round.

Burnley

What I wrote:

Scott Parker — lovely hair, questionable Premier League record. Expect Burnley to be rooted near the bottom, playing open, inviting football for the opposition. Parker won’t last past Christmas.

Reality: Burnley finished 19th, conceding a league-high 75 goals. They took just 22 points from 38 games. Parker did last past Christmas, but left the club in April.

Chelsea

What I wrote:

Chelsea will flirt with the title before realising they left their goalkeeper and defensive organisation somewhere in the past. When Cole Palmer’s scoring drought begins, expect goals to dry up faster than Todd Boehly’s patience.

Reality: Chelsea parted ways with Enzo Maresca — who is now Manchester City manager — midway through the campaign. The club continued their model of signing a lot of young, inexperienced players. The Blues finished 10th. Palmer scored 10 and assisted one goal. However, injuries curtailed his campaign. Palmer scored a mere one goal in his final eight league appearances.

Crystal Palace

What I wrote:

Oliver Glasner is a magician with an IKEA budget, and Palace will once again be awkward customers for the big boys. Expect a season that’s solid but not spectacular.

Reality: Palace won some big league games, yet still finished 15th. Glasner had to deal with the sales of Eberchi Eze and Marc Guehi. Glasner still managed to lead Palace to the Conference League trophy. It was the third trophy won under Glasner’s management. Glasner left the club at the end of the season after his contract expired, joining Nottingham Forest.

Everton

What I wrote:

Perennial relegation candidates who still think it’s 1987. Signing Jack Grealish will look like genius until November, when his form and hamstrings both take a holiday. Expect more fighting spirit than footballing quality.

Reality: Grealish made little impact outside the opening weeks of the campaign. He finished with two goals and six assists — although four of those assists occurred in the Toffees’ three opening games. A foot injury, not hamstring, put Grealish out for Everton’s final 16 games. Everton finished 13th.

Fulham

What I wrote:

Marco Silva is already eyeing the exit, and by the time he’s gone, Fulham will be halfway down the trapdoor. A short, sharp plunge back into the Championship awaits.

Reality: I was a season off on this, but more on that later. Silva did leave at the end of the season, joining Benfica. The manager did wonders at Fulham. Last season was pretty strong, as the Cottagers finished 11th.

Leeds United

What I wrote:

Leeds will stay up, though Daniel Farke’s tenure may not. They’ll entertain, upset a few teams with better squads, and generally be the sort of team you enjoy watching — unless you support them.

Reality: Leeds United did stay up. Despite rumours of his sacking during parts of the season, Farke remained in charge. Indeed, Leeds United were fun to watch, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin playing a major part in the campaign. He stayed fit, showing that Everton’s medical staff and training under a variety of managers was the real cause of his injuries.

Liverpool

What I wrote:

Liverpool will have wobbles but enough star power to steady the ship. The tragic loss of Diogo Jota will cast a long emotional shadow, but the Reds will find the resolve to retain their crown.

Reality: Okay, so everything I wrote was true except Liverpool winning the league again. Who could have predicted Liverpool would have an awful season, with Mohamed Salah looking like a shell of his former self — or like a 33-year-old. Arne Slot was sacked at the end of the season for losing the dressing room and playing boring, slow football. Salah was let out of his contract and joined Turkey’s Trabzonspor.

Manchester City

What I wrote:

Manchester City look human. No blockbuster signings, an ageing core, and the whiff of Pep’s farewell tour. This season they’ll miss the top four, and the rest of the league will remember what hope feels like.

Reality: Okay, Manchester City finished second and could have won the title with some more consistency. It did prove to be Pep’s final season. The transfers didn’t work out, which they haven’t for a few seasons now. Manchester City did do a domestic cup double, which made the campaign look more successful.

Manchester United

What I wrote:

Reuben Amorim will last the season (just), persist with his three-at-the-back obsession, and watch Benjamin Sesko struggle to translate hype into goals. Better than last year, but that’s not saying much.

Reality: Amorim didn’t last the season. Michael Carrick took over and guided Manchester United to third. Sesko did struggle at the start of the season, but improved, scoring 11 goals in 30 games. Not a great return for the amount of money spent. There is hope he can score far more in the future.

Newcastle United

What I wrote:

Newcastle United are still struggling to attract the creme de la creme of talent. Eddie Howe will keep the Toon respectable, the press will keep calling him England’s managerial messiah, and the trophy cabinet won’t see another piece of silverware in 2025-26.

Reality: Newcastle United were forced to sell Alexander Isak to Liverpool after the player refused to play and demanded to leave. Howe’s influence on transfers showed just how poor he seems to be at talent ID, which I’ll argue he struggled with at Bournemouth as that club became a Championship and Premier League mainstay. Newcastle finished 12th, scoring 53 times and conceding 55 goals. Howe was dismissed after the season and stars Anthony Gordon, Bruno Guimaraes, and Sandro Tonali were all sold this summer.

Nottingham Forest

What I wrote:

Last year’s overachievement won’t be repeated. Nuno Espirito Santo will guide Forest to midtable safety, far from Europe but comfortably above trouble.

Reality: Santo’s relationship with the club hit the skids right after I published the article. He left Forest shortly thereafter and the club spun through Ange Postecoglou, Sean Dyche, and finally Vitor Pereira. Forest finished 15th, just above the relegation zone.

Sunderland

What I wrote:

Lots of new faces, many of them are mystery imports. Expect some painful afternoons, but also enough opportunistic wins against fellow strugglers to keep the Black Cats in the top flight.

Reality: Not only did Sunderland retain their Premier League status, but they qualified for the Europa League. The Black Cats were exciting to watch, collecting 54 points.

Tottenham Hotspur

What I wrote:

Thomas Frank is clever, pragmatic, and brilliant at team talks. He’ll get Spurs organised and hard to beat, pushing them into the top eight. There will be hiccups, but at least the football will make sense. He will increase expectations for the future.

Reality: I like Thomas Frank. I think he is a very good coach. However, the Tottenham Hotspur players did not. There was rebellion against Frank. It nearly cost Spurs their Premier League status. The club finished 17th for the second straight season. Frank was dismissed midway through the season, and Roberto De Zerbi came in, righting the ship enough to keep the team in the league by two points.

West Ham

What I wrote:

It’s going to be a scrap. Graham Potter’s thoughtful but sleep-inducing style will test fan patience, and if he’s still in charge come January, the Hammers could be in serious trouble. He won five, drew nine, and lost nine in 19 matches as West Ham manager.

Reality: Potter was sacked by West Ham after just five games and one win to start the season. Nuno Espirito Santo took over and nearly kept West Ham in the league. However, the Hammers were relegated in the end. Potter somehow was hired as the Sweden national team manager after another sub-par performance coaching in the Premier League.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

What I wrote:

Wolves only survived last year because others were worse. They’ve since lost key players and look even more lightweight. Unless there’s a miracle, expect them to go quietly into the Championship night.

Reality: I got this prediction spot on. Wolves were relegated, finishing bottom of the league with 20 points, 27 goals scored, and 68 allowed.

So, How Did I Actually Do?

I don’t think I did too badly last season with my Premier League predictions. There were some spectacular misses, some predictions that were remarkably close, and a few that turned out to be almost painfully accurate.

That is the joy of making predictions before a football season. You can look like a genius in August and an absolute idiot by May.

Let me know your thoughts on my predictions, and keep an eye out for the upcoming article looking at my predictions for the upcoming 2026-27 campaign.

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The club’s defeat to NEC comes just days after Sporting Kansas City finalised their $22 million transfer for winger Andre Luiz. Sporting will pay $18 million upfront,

with additional money being paid as add-ons.

According to OneFootball, Olympiacos have a 20% sell-on fee. If true, Sporting Kansas City will pay a large sum to Olympiacos if and when they sell the player. The chances of Sporting Kansas City recouping much of the fee paid for Andre Luiz are low unless he sells for $30 million or more.

I’ve previously outlined my thoughts on Andre Luiz. Sporting Kansas City are paying a sizeable fee, the biggest in club history, for a player whose best moments came last season for Rio Ave in Portugal. Those performances were in the first half of the season before Olympiacos signed Andre Luiz in January. The Brazilian failed to score or assist a goal in eight appearances in all competitions once joining Olympiacos.

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The Greek club has cashed in on the winger, knowing he was unlikely to ever push towards being a starting player for them.

Had Sporting Kansas City waited until after Olympiacos’ Champions League third-round qualifying tie was settled, perhaps they could have negotiated a cheaper transfer for Andre Luiz. There aren’t too many European clubs capable of spending $22 million on an unproven Andre Luiz currently due cash shortages. With Olympiacos only playing domestic football this season, they will need to reduce the number of players in the squad.

MLS gives Andre Luiz an opportunity

The upside for Andre Luiz is that MLS is seen by many as a stepping stone to bigger leagues. As it stands, moving Stateside is a positive decision. Andre Luiz could either play for lower-tier European teams in Portugal, Greece, or another possibly third-tier league, or he could go to MLS, where scouts from England, Spain, Germany, France, and the Netherlands keep a keen eye on things.

I continue to stand by the argument that Sporting Kansas City should sign a defensive midfielder rather than a winger. However, the club have decided to go for a winger, and I’m not sure that was the original plan going into the summer transfer window.

Sporting still have a long way to go

Andre Luiz still has time to establish himself as a Sporting Kansas City player this season. There are still 16 games left in the campaign. The Wizards are 10 points off the final playoff place in the Western Conference. Nothing has given me confidence this team can make up those 10 points and get into the postseason. Not even adding Andre Luiz.

The best Sporting Kansas City can hope for is that Andre Luiz is fit and firing when the league moves to the summer-to-spring season in 2027-28. Sporting will have had a summer transfer window to help build the squad by then.

That season isn’t far away, just 12 months. Yet, knowing what the Sporting Kansas City team will look like in a year is anyone’s guess.

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Just 27, the six-foot-four defender is in the prime of his career – or at least he should be. With a defensive corps consisting of the ageing Virgil van Dijk, the often-injured Joe Gomez, and the youthful but coming-off-injuries Giovanni Leoni and Jeremy Jacquet, Araujo offers Liverpool a strong presence in the heart of defence for the upcoming campaign. Additionally, he is only on loan, with no obligation to make it a permanent transfer.

What’s not to love?

There were plenty of Barcelona supporters eager for Araujo to leave. But let’s be fair, Barcelona fans, like Real Madrid supporters, are the most fickle of them all in the world of football. One day they love you; the next day they wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.

Why did Barcelona let him leave?

Firstly, I assume Barcelona’s main reason for loaning out Araujo for the season is to get in line with the club’s Squad Cost Limit. Sure, Barcelona had their cap increased for the coming season by La Liga, but the club spends money like a drunken sailor on shore leave.

The Blaugrana already signed Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United, Karim Adeyemi from Borussia Dortmund, and Jesse Bisiwu from Club Brugge NXT.

According to Transfermarkt, Barcelona have already spent €100 million on players. The Blaugrana aren’t done. The club are trying to sign Rodri from Manchester City and Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid. It would likely take more than €200 million to get both deals done. While Atleti don’t want to sell and don’t have to, Manchester City have said they won’t sell Rodri for less than €50 million.

Ferran Torres has been sold to Paris Saint-Germain. Instead of giving the World Cup winner a new contract, which would have seen Barcelona forced to pay an additional €8 million to Manchester City as an add-on, the Blaugrana decided to spend money on Gordon – a player they didn’t need, although his wages are likely less in the end than Torres’ wages. However, they still had to stump up the money to buy Gordon. Barcelona will get €55 million for Torres.

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Moving Araujo and Torres should help Barcelona’s financial issues with the Squad Cost Limit. Yet, it isn’t the only reason the former was allowed to leave Liverpool on loan.

One report suggests Araujo was on more than €350,000 per week at Barcelona. Those reports also claim Araujo took a sizable wage cut to join Liverpool for the 2026-27 campaign. If my maths is correct, Araujo would have grossed more than €18 million at Barcelona, and that excludes any bonuses. Getting Araujo’s wages off their books was likely a major factor in getting new players signed and registered for the new campaign.

The numbers raise questions

Araujo’s wages weren’t the only key contributor to loaning him out. The Uruguayan defender may have been one of the club captains, but he wasn’t the significant presence at Camp Nou he’d been previously.

Let’s just go ahead and say Araujo makes Liverpool better on paper. He can play both centre-back and right-back. He is 27, which makes him a veteran defender with some miles left on the tyres.

Van Dijk, on the other hand, just turned 35. There are already plenty of questions about whether he can return to previous high performances for the Reds. He didn’t cover himself in glory against Monaco in Liverpool’s 3-2 preseason loss, giving away a clear penalty despite what the pro-Liverpool commentators said during the match.

Araujo appears to be an excellent signing. Yet, looking at the numbers, fams may need to calm down.

The defender played in 24 matches in 2025-26, starting just 11 times. He compiled 1,061 minutes, or 44 minutes per La Liga fixture.

Perhaps most worrying were Araujo’s defensive metrics. He ranked in the 20th percentile for defensive contributions, which seems odd because he is a defender. He ranked in the 30th percentile with a mere 21 tackles. Araujo again ranked in the 30th percentile for interceptions with nine.

While he made 48 recoveries in La Liga last season, it still only ranked him in the 40th percentile compared to players from similar leagues playing the same position. While Araujo’s passing and defensive metrics amongst defenders from last season don’t look great, his shooting and attacking metrics do. However, he isn’t being signed to score goals. Araujo is at Anfield to stop them.

A lack of game time

But what about the 2024-25 season? Well, Araujo played in just 12 La Liga games, compiling 757 minutes. A hamstring injury prevented Araujo from playing Barcelona’s opening 16 league matches. Once fit, he was in and out of the squad, spending several league games on the bench for the entire 90 minutes.

In 2023-24, Araujo played 25 league matches, with 21 of those being starts. He played 1,994 minutes – 79.76 minutes per match. The defender had one goal and two assists, and again, his metrics for attacking play were strong. All but one placed him in the 80th and 90th percentile for various categories.

Araujo’s passing and possession stats were also very strong, showing him as a ball-playing defender, dare I say, like Van Dijk, but his defensive metrics for La Liga were again poor. Araujo ranked in the 40th percentile for defensive contributions, 50th percentile for tackles, and 40th percentile for interceptions.

Araujo’s best season was arguably the 2021-22 La Liga campaign. He tallied 25 starts from 30 overall league appearances, tallying 2,270 minutes – his most as a Barcelona player. Araujo averaged 76 minutes per La Liga fixture. It was one of the few seasons at Barcelona in which Araujo played if fit, which he was for most of the campaign. He missed four games due to a hamstring injury, one from a hand injury, and one due to concussion.

Injuries have kept Araujo out of games plenty of times during his career. However, it wasn’t an injury that affected him completely in 2025-26.

Araujo missed seven Barcelona matches due to depression a season ago. The defender suffered from anxiety that manifested into depression over the course of 18 months. It led to Araujo requesting time away from Barcelona in December 2025, allowing him to get professional help.

Thirteen of Araujo’s 24 appearances for Barcelona last season came after returning from depression treatment. Just two of those 13 games saw Araujo play a full 90 minutes.

The worry is that Araujo hasn’t played a lot of league minutes over the last few years due to injuries and mental health issues.

Can Araujo handle the Premier League?

Perhaps more worryingly is that Araujo is stepping into a Liverpool side looking to rebound from last season. Let’s be honest, Barcelona have four very difficult matches each season. Those fixtures are against Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid. The quality within La Liga outside of Barcelona and the two big Madrid clubs is low, especially when you get into the bottom half of the La Liga table.

The Premier League is a far more difficult league, with teams from top to bottom featuring elite players thanks to the money within the division. The money available to teams up and down the Premier League table makes it a far more difficult league to navigate, despite teams like Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal winning the title in the years following Leicester City’s miracle campaign.

Former Liverpool player Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain stated in an interview on the Fozcast that there are no easy games in the Premier League these days. According to the player, and agreed by Fozcast host Ben Foster, the Premier League was easier just over 10 years ago, with several “give me” games each season.

Can Araujo step up to the rigours and difficulty level of the Premier League? The intensity and physicality of the Premier League is far higher than in La Liga.

If Araujo can adapt and rediscover his best form, then his signing will look like a major success for the Reds.

Why the loan makes sense for Liverpool

A lot of supporters will complain that Liverpool have not splashed the cash on a new big-money permanent defensive transfer. The reason this hasn’t happened this summer is due to Leoni and Jacquet being the future of Liverpool’s central defence.

The pair will inherit the central defensive roles, with this season potentially being the last for Van Dijk. Signing a permanent transfer would only block the pathway for both Leoni and Jacquet.

In the book How to Win the Premier League by Ian Graham, the former Liverpool data analyst, the club only signed players if those available were better than the ones already at the club.

With the potential of both Leoni and Jacquet, two defenders that could be at the club for the next decade, Liverpool don’t see it worthwhile to make a permanent transfer for a centre-back at this time.

It isn’t a secret that sporting director Richard Hughes didn’t have a good season in charge of Liverpool’s transfer business in 2025-26. Liverpool won the Premier League title in 2024-25 with Hughes making one signing, Federico Chiesa. The following summer, after spending on three attacking players, two full-backs, and a goalkeeper, Liverpool had to fight to finish fifth.

Liverpool’s last big loan signing didn’t workout. You may not even remember Arthur Melo’s god-awful loan signing in 2022. Arthur arrived from Juventus, played 13 minutes for Liverpool, got injured, and then had surgery, missing the rest of the campaign.

A gamble worth taking?

Araujo’s arrival certainly makes Liverpool stronger on paper. However, his recent lack of game time, injury record, and defensive metrics mean this is far from the sure thing some supporters might believe it is.

The loan structure, though, gives Liverpool the opportunity to find out whether Araujo can rediscover the form that made him a Barcelona captain and one of the most respected defenders in Europe.

If he can adapt to the Premier League and remain fit, Liverpool could have found exactly what they need without committing to another enormous permanent transfer.

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This isn’t the first time a Greek club has seen a desperate Sporting KC and (potentially) fleeced them in the transfer market. In 2025, Sporting paid $5 million for Manu Garcia and Shapi.

While the former has been one of Sporting’s best players over the last 18 months, the latter has been far more cold than hot. Yet, neither player would be considered an elite MLS performer with the top clubs trying to pry them away from the Kansas City area.

I get why Sporting Kansas City are looking to splash the cash. Peter Mallouk and, probably, David Lee want to show supporters they are building something post-World Cup. The club and MLS are desperate to build on the tournament, which, for me, is already a distant memory. The league has completely dropped the ball when it comes to maintaining that momentum—which was partly due to owners not being proactive in the years building up to the World Cup.

So, I understand the reasoning behind trying to sign Andre Luiz for a club-record fee. I just don’t like it, and I don’t think it makes much sense right now.

For starters, Sporting have the second-worst defence in MLS with 46 goals allowed in 18 games for 2.56 goals conceded per game. Orlando City have the worst defence, with 47 goals conceded, but they have improved as the season has gone on.

Sporting Kansas City have signed a variety of defenders since the start of the 2026 MLS campaign who have shown they are not the solution. They’ve changed goalkeepers and may do so again. That gave the team a brief bump in results, but that too has already flatlined.

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Sporting also have the worst xG (16) and lowest goals scored total (18) in MLS. Yes, signing another winger could, in theory, help solve that problem, but that was also the rationale behind bringing in Capita, who has blown hot and cold since arriving.

Calvin Harris has been much the same. Yet both Capita and Harris have looked good when they’ve actually seen the ball. That’s the real issue. Sporting’s wingers simply don’t receive enough possession to make a consistent impact in attack. Signing Andre Luiz for $18 million isn’t suddenly going to mean he touches the ball more often or creates more chances for Dejan Joveljic or himself.

Sporting are 28th out of 30 teams in touches in the opposition box (349). There is a problem that lies deeper in the midfield, preventing this team from getting the ball to the forwards in dangerous attacking areas.

The club already have Harris, Capita, Shapi, and Stephen Afrifa. Of those four, Shapi has largely been a waste, although even he has shown flashes. Harris and Capita have played well statistically. Afrifa doesn’t get the playing time he should. He has scored one goal and tallied an assist in a mere 314 minutes.

Sporting KC have become a winger’s graveyard.

Unless other areas of the squad are addressed, Andre Luiz would simply become the next winger to disappear at Sporting Park. Do score and assist a few goals, yet due to underlying problems elsewhere, not be able to flourish.

Do Andre Luiz’s numbers justify the fee?

Before going any further, let’s look at Andre Luiz’s 2025-26 campaign.

He finished with zero goals and zero assists in eight Greek Super League appearances for Olympiacos. There is a caveat.

Andre Luiz only joined the club in January 2026 after beginning the season with Rio Ave in Portugal, where he scored seven goals and supplied five assists in just 19 league matches. Not a bad return for a club who went on to finish 12th out of 16 teams. The Liga Portugal, outside the top six teams, would be comparable to much of MLS.

Andre Luiz is valued at around $5 million, yet Sporting are reportedly prepared to pay more than three times that amount.

Olympiacos simply can’t refuse that kind of money for a player they signed only eight months ago. But allowing Andre Luiz to leave after such a short period should also tell you something.

This reminds me of the Diego Borges signing. Another Brazilian who played for a few months in Hungary before being allowed to leave for what was big money, around $2 million, for Zalaegerszeg.

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Andre Luiz’s seven goals and five assists at Rio Ave represented the best return of his professional career. Before that, his highest league goal tally was four, and he had never registered more than one assist in a league season.

I’m of the opinion that half a season at Rio Ave was an outlier rather than the norm.

The midfield remains Sporting’s biggest weakness

Sporting Kansas City’s midfield is a mess.

The team desperately need a specialist defensive midfielder to partner Lasse Berg Johnsen. There is simply too much work for the Norwegian to do on his own.

Jake Davis and Jacob Bartlett are two home-grown players who simply weren’t ready for this level when they were promoted to the first team, yet they continue to play significant minutes. Davis has played 1,324 minutes (third-most on the team), and Bartlett 850 (eighth-most).

Zorhan Bassong played for several clubs before arriving in Kansas City. Sporting are seemingly the only club to conclude that he deserved a new contract and a regular place in midfield when fit.

Bassong has made only nine appearances because of the hamstring injury he suffered during the first half of the season.

Don’t get me wrong, I like Bassong as a player, but I don’t think he gets into too many other MLS teams. His passing statistics are abysmal, ranking in the lower percentiles across virtually every passing category. His defensive numbers are no better. He has made just 16 tackles and six interceptions while committing 16 fouls.

What do those numbers tell me?

Bassong isn’t quick enough in midfield, doesn’t anticipate danger well enough and, when he does commit to a challenge, he either gets beaten or brings the opponent down.

Jacob Bartlett’s numbers are even worse.

Seriously, Sporting KC, if you need someone to crunch performance data and scout players, just ask. I genuinely couldn’t do much worse than what’s happening now, and I’m a Missourian.

Although Bartlett has recorded 54 defensive actions, he has made only nine tackles and 23 interceptions. He has committed 17 fouls and has been dribbled past five times.

Perhaps the most revealing statistic is that Sporting have conceded 27 goals while Bartlett has been on the pitch compared to an xGA of just 22.6.

How many of those goals has he been responsible for? A few due to being unaware of the attacker steaming in behind him. Sorry, kid. This is professional football. I understand you were promoted because you were the best of what the academy had and a low-priced option. But this level looks to be too high.

Build the spine before buying more forwards

So, what does all of this tell us about Sporting’s midfield?

Quite simply, if Sporting want to improve, they have to address the problems in the middle of the pitch.

Lee has signed defenders almost at random. Moises Mosquera, Or Blorian, and Emir Karic all arrived this summer. A left-back was needed. I’m still not entirely convinced about Mosquera, especially when the club can’t shift several of its other defenders to fellow MLS teams.

Although, to be fair, Mosquera does make some sense because Sporting were rinsed in the signing of Diego Borges, who has played just three games. In those appearances, he looked like he’d never played football before.

With Justin Reynolds routinely injured, the club also needed another right-back.

Sporting are trying to sign more attacking players, but continuing to overlook the midfield remains the biggest issue.

The defence can’t defend without a strong midfield screening it. Likewise, the attack can’t attack without a midfield capable of getting the ball to the forwards.

I was always taught to build a strong spine first and then build around it. That simply isn’t what Sporting are doing. It wasn’t what Peter Vermes did either as the years wore on.

I genuinely feel for Raphael Wicky, who is simply trying to make the best of the players he has been given. Let’s not be too hard on this team. Rebuilding takes time. The problem is that this was supposed to be the rebuilding season.

There is nothing that has happened in 2026 to suggest Sporting will be significantly better in 2027’s sprint season or during MLS’s first full campaign under the new summer-to-spring calendar.

The numbers already point towards the solution

I will say that Manu Garcia’s attacking metrics rank highly compared to other midfielders. He has four assists and two goals from just nine shots. That’s remarkably efficient.

Manu’s defensive numbers aren’t good, but that’s because he isn’t a No. 6 despite wearing the shirt. Wearing the No. 6 doesn’t magically make you a defensive midfielder.

Berg Johnsen’s numbers also show a player performing well in difficult circumstances. One goal from eight shots while outperforming his xG is encouraging. His passing, possession, and defensive metrics are all good, if not spectacular.

The statistic that lands like a Mike Tyson right hook on Punch-Out!!, however, is the 33 goals Sporting have conceded while Berg Johnsen has been on the pitch. The team’s xGA with Berg Johnsen on the field is only 25.

Teams continue to score low-quality goals against Sporting because the defending is poor and the goalkeeping should be better.

Again, Berg Johnsen and Manu are players worth building around. The same can be said for Harris, whose shooting metrics rank in the 90th percentile in nearly every category compared to players in his position. He has two goals and three assists in 18 appearances, and has played the team’s second-most minutes (1,372). For a player signed as a free agent and earning $375,000. That’s a steal.

Capita, meanwhile, has two goals and one assist in 11 matches. Nothing spectacular, but, again, these wingers don’t see a lot of the ball. Capita has just 333 touches, which ranks in the 20th percentile for players in his position. The team isn’t getting their creative players the ball. Most of the team because the midfield and defence can’t win it.

Joveljic, once again, continues to carry this team with eight of Sporting’s 18 league goals. He has also played the most minutes (1,601) of any player in MLS this season. Let that sink in. Without Joveljic’s goals, this team would be sunk.

The talent is there. The players simply aren’t receiving the ball in the right areas often enough. Andre Luiz won’t change that.

Opponents only have to continue doing what they’ve been doing all season. Play through Sporting’s vacant midfield, attack the back line with numbers, force defenders to run towards their own goal whenever possible, and shoot on sight.

It isn’t rocket science. In fact, it’s football’s equivalent of picking low-hanging fruit.

The wrong rebuild?

The reported $18 million fee for Andre Luiz is a huge amount of money that could instead be used to sign two or even three quality central midfielders.

But this is MLS. Nobody gets excited about defensive midfielders. Fans don’t rush to buy shirts because a club signed someone who screens the back four. Journalists don’t write glowing headlines about players who build solid foundations.

It’s amazing what a proper specialist No. 6 can do for a football team. This morning I found a least two free agents thanks to Transfermarkt Sporting Kansas City could approach. Of course, I don’t know what is happening behind the scenes, so perhaps Lee is working on a deal to get a specialist No. 6. I just hope he doesn’t see the midfield Sporting Kansas City currently have and think, “yeah, this will do.”

Even if there isn’t an obvious candidate available, at least try to identify someone who specialises in sniffing out danger and extinguishing opposition attacks. Davis and Bartlett can’t do either. Show supporters that you actually know how to build a football team. From back to front with a strong spine. Okay, yes, the club have signed multiple defenders, I give you that.

As I’ve written before, Sporting are on course to concede more goals than at any point in club history (87), and hardly anyone bats an eyelid.

They’re on the verge of missing the playoffs for a third consecutive season—another unwanted first in club history—and hardly anyone bats an eyelid.

Instead, I keep seeing social media posts about Kansas City being the capital of American soccer and how the World Cup has made the city a major player in the game.

Marketing slogans don’t change the reality that Kansas City is currently home to MLS’s worst team. Next season will simply become another rebuilding campaign.

Joveljic and Manu Garcia have little reason to remain beyond the end of their contracts. Indeed, how many players want to come to work when things are this bad every weekend?

The 2026 season is effectively over with Sporting sitting 10 points outside the final playoff place. I predicted this team would reach the playoffs before the season began. Unfortunately, my optimism has now been replaced by realism.

Then Daniel Salloi was sold to Toronto—still a good financial move—and the wheels completely came off. Salloi has four goals and three assists on a very bad Toronto team.

Sporting are no better than they were last season, and there is a genuine argument that last year’s team was actually stronger.

I can’t see next season—the first full campaign rather than the sprint season—being anything other than another year of rebuilding. The spring season is likely to throw up some crazy results as teams prepare for the first full season under the new format.

Thank goodness this is MLS, where relegation doesn’t exist. Otherwise, Sporting would already have been relegated last season and would probably be fighting for survival in the second division this season.

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Transfermarkt values Barcola at £77 million, while FotMob is a little more conservative, valuing him at just £54 million. Regardless of the valuation, the price to sign Barcola would be significant for Liverpool ahead of Andoni Iraola’s first season in charge.

Two camps have emerged following the news that Liverpool want to sign Barcola. The first desperately wants the Reds to add the Frenchman to the squad. Listen to any of the numerous Liverpool podcasts or read the blogs, and supporters are chomping at the bit to see Barcola arrive at Anfield.

The second camp is made up of journalists and podcasters who believe Barcola is overrated and struggling for game time at Paris Saint-Germain. Thus making him a waste of money.

Let’s take an analytical approach to Liverpool’s pursuit of Barcola this summer. Analytical approaches are exactly what Liverpool use when making signings. The data miners and scouts at the club will have already done the work.

If you’ve watched football over the last few years, it doesn’t take much to understand why one of Europe’s elite clubs would want Barcola, even if not everyone believes he is worth £140 million.

Firstly, it should be noted that Liverpool are searching for Mohamed Salah’s long-term successor. The club have already signed Victor Munoz from Osasuna. With six goals and two assists in 31 La Liga games last season, Liverpool will hope Munoz develops into an elite player at an elite club.

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Before anyone slags off either Munoz or Liverpool for the signing, it is worth remembering he was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise poor Osasuna side. Osasuna finished 17th and survived relegation on goal difference after scoring just 44 league goals. Munoz contributed to 18% of the team’s total.

It should also be noted that Barcola reportedly wants to leave Paris Saint-Germain, making a move to Anfield possible. Liverpool are not the only club interested, with Arsenal also linked. There are several elite wingers available this summer. Arsenal are pursuing Vinicius Jr, while Real Madrid are interested in Yan Diomande, another player Liverpool were linked with before the World Cup.

Barcola’s contract runs until 2028. Paris Saint-Germain have no need to sell and, with two years remaining on his deal, are fully entitled to demand £140 million.

Did Barcola really disappear in PSG’s biggest matches?

Barcola scored 11 goals in 29 Ligue 1 matches during the 2025-26 campaign. He started 21 of those games, playing 1,750 minutes.

In the Champions League, he scored twice and added four assists across 16 appearances, accumulating 983 minutes. He averaged 60.3 minutes per Ligue 1 appearance and 61.4 minutes in Europe.

Looking purely at those numbers, it appears Luis Enrique deliberately managed Barcola’s workload. Considering he could also choose from Desire Doue, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Ousmane Dembele, Ibrahim Mbaye, Goncalo Ramos, and Kang-in Lee, PSG arguably possessed the strongest attacking group in world football.

One criticism repeatedly levelled at Barcola is that he failed to start PSG’s biggest matches. That argument ignores the context.

He was never going to displace Ballon d’Or winner Dembele, who was the main attacking player in the side. Competition for places was extraordinarily high at PSG.

Although Barcola did not start the Champions League Final, he came on in the second half and played throughout extra time. More importantly, he started 12 Champions League matches, including every league-phase fixture, both playoff matches against Monaco, and both last-16 games against Chelsea. In the two-legged playoffs and the last-16 fixtures, he produced two goals and one assist.

The reason he disappeared from the starting XI later in the competition was simple: an ankle injury.

The injury ruled him out of the quarterfinal first leg against Liverpool before he returned for the second leg as a substitute, providing an assist. From that point onwards, Enrique understandably relied on fully fit forwards, using Barcola as a spark off the bench.

The same injury did not derail his domestic campaign, however. Barcola started seven of PSG’s final eight Ligue 1 matches and scored against city-rival Paris FC on the final day.

The claim that Barcola was not trusted in PSG’s biggest matches simply does not stand up when the context and injury record are considered.

The numbers behind the player

Barcola joined PSG from Lyon in 2023 for around £47 million after scoring just five goals and producing eight assists. His development has been impressive in Paris to say the least.

After four goals and seven assists in his debut season, he followed that with 14 goals and 10 assists before producing 11 goals and two assists last season. While the assists declined, PSG’s extraordinary attacking depth naturally meant goals and assists were shared between several elite forwards.

Barcola recorded an xG of 10.83 from 67 shots, with eight of his 11 goals coming inside the penalty area. He hit the target with 46% of his attempts, highlighting where he is most dangerous.

Although critics point towards his modest assist total, the underlying data tells a different story.

Barcola ranked in the 90th percentile for goals, expected goals, shots, and shots on target among players in his position. His assist numbers placed him only in the 20th percentile, but his expected assists stood at 4.5.

Expected assists are influenced by the finishing of teammates rather than simply the quality of the final pass. Had PSG finished more clinically in Ligue 1, Barcola’s assist total would almost certainly have been higher.

He also created 38 chances, ranking in the 80th percentile, and 11 big chances, placing him in the 90th percentile.

Barcola’s defensive work should also appeal to Iraola. Liverpool’s new manager demands relentless pressing and work out of possession. Barcola has already proved he can thrive in exactly that environment under Enrique.

How does Barcola compare?

Compared with teammate Doue, Barcola scored more Ligue 1 goals, attempted more shots, and hit the target more often. He also outscored Kvaratskhelia while producing better shooting accuracy.

The more interesting comparison, however, is Salah.

Barcola played fewer league minutes, 1,750 compared with Salah’s 2,148. Part of that difference comes from Ligue 1 having fewer fixtures, but it also reflects PSG’s extraordinary squad depth and Enrique’s rotation.

Even so, Barcola outscored Salah 11 goals to seven. Salah finished with more assists and created more chances, but Barcola attempted more shots, registered significantly more shots on target, and posted considerably stronger shooting accuracy (62% to 42%).

The PSG man also had 2.57 shots per 90 minutes to Salah’s 1.89. He tallied 1.59 shots on target per 90 compared to Salah’s 0.80.

Barcola’s defensive metrics were all better than Salah’s as well. Unlike Salah, Barcola didn’t have the luxury of staying at the halfway line waiting for a counter-attack to occur.

Is £140m really too much?

The argument that Barcola is not worth £140 million ignores today’s transfer market. Morgan Rogers has already moved from Aston Villa to Chelsea for £117 million, while Elliot Anderson joined Manchester City from Nottingham Forest for £116 million.

Liverpool are not simply buying another winger. They are attempting to replace one of the four greatest players in the club’s history, Salah. For reference, the four greatest players are Kevin Keegan, Kenny Dalglish, Steven Gerrard, and Salah.

Yes, £140 million sounds extraordinary. Yet, it wouldn’t still pale in comparison to the amount PSG paid for Neymar and Mbappe. Considering inflation, Neymar went for £275 million and Mbappe for £217 million.

Yet if Barcola produces even half of what Salah achieved during nine remarkable years at Anfield, Liverpool’s investment will look entirely justified.

Should Liverpool sign Bradley Barcola?

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The former, won in 2024-25, saw Chelsea defeat Real Betis 4-1 in the final. The latter came after Chelsea beat Paris Saint-Germain in the final of FIFA’s expanded tournament, a competition the organisation desperately hoped would rival the UEFA Champions League.

As of late July 2026, Chelsea have signed around 55 players, turning Stamford Bridge into a conveyor belt of young talent constantly arriving and departing. The recruitment isn’t slowing down either.

The latest rumours link Chelsea with former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and Brighton striker Danny Welbeck. Both are on the wrong side of 35, yet Chelsea have become so overloaded with young prospects that experienced professionals suddenly feel like a necessity rather than a luxury.

A football club or a project gone wrong?

If you haven’t followed Chelsea’s transfer strategy under BlueCo, you can be forgiven. The club’s approach has been to sign as many young, high-potential players as possible, develop them, hand some minutes to increase their value, and hope their market price rises before selling them on for profits.

It is a strategy that resembles private equity more than football, while also drawing comparisons with Major League Baseball’s minor league system. Todd Boehly, after all, is a co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Chelsea have also used Strasbourg, another club within BlueCo’s multi-club network, to loan out young players in an attempt to accelerate their development. Even so, many of the players signed for Stamford Bridge have failed to establish themselves.

This summer, the club have already sold once-promising players Andrey Santos, Tyrique George, and Alejandro Garnacho (you didn’t have to be a football genius to know that wouldn’t work out). Marc Cucurella also left, joining Real Madrid.

While the club haven’t won trophies to show their strategy is working, this summer, Chelsea have brought in money on the sales of the players mentioned. Over £100 million has been brought in. Yet, with the money spent on transfers, salaries, agent fees, bonuses, etc, it is just a drop in the Chelsea bucket.

The numbers tell the story

Chelsea finished 10th in the Premier League in 2025-26 with 52 points. They posted identical home and away records of seven wins, five draws, and seven defeats.

Enzo Maresca, despite winning the FIFA Club World Cup during the summer of 2025, departed midway through the campaign. With the Manchester City job potentially becoming available, Maresca made the move, but frustrations had already grown over the way Chelsea were being run. Since leaving, Maresca has been appointed coach of Manchester City, a place he is likely to happier as Pep Guardiola’s replacement.

Joao Pedro finished as Chelsea’s leading scorer with 15 goals while also registering five assists. Enzo Fernandez, despite frequent criticism over his performances and leadership, contributed 10 goals.

Cole Palmer’s campaign deserves closer examination. His return of 10 league goals appears respectable until compared with previous seasons. Palmer exploded onto the scene after arriving from Manchester City in 2023, scoring 22 goals and providing 11 assists in his debut campaign. He followed that with 15 goals and eight assists before declining again to 10 goals and just one assist last season.

The penalty statistics make the drop-off even clearer. Nine of Palmer’s 22 league goals in his first season came from the spot. Four of his 15 goals the following year were penalties. Last season, half of his 10 league goals also came from the penalty spot. With that said, statistically, Palmer still ranks highly against his peers.

Despite the decline, many still view Palmer as the player capable of leading Chelsea back to trophies. Yet his decreasing goal contributions, particularly from open play, should concern supporters. The influence he once had on matches simply hasn’t been there.

Will Chelsea finally show patience?

Chelsea have employed five permanent managers and three interim coaches since Todd Boehly’s arrival.

Former Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso was appointed this summer. This time last year Alonso had taken charge of Real Madrid, only to lose that job 233 days later. His hyper-tactical, detail-oriented style did not work with Real Madrid’s prima donna, who expects the manager to take a back seat while they sort it all out themselves.

There is no guarantee Alonso will succeed at Stamford Bridge. He is only a few years removed from leading Bayer Leverkusen to the club’s first Bundesliga title, but that success came because Leverkusen gave him time to implement his ideas, build a coherent squad, and develop a clear tactical identity. He also benefited from a balanced squad containing exciting young players alongside experienced professionals. That appears to be exactly what Chelsea are attempting to build this summer.

The real question is what happens when things inevitably go wrong. Will Chelsea stick with Alonso through difficult periods, or will BlueCo press the reset button once again?

Nothing Chelsea have done this summer screams that this squad is ready to challenge for the Premier League title. After nearly £2 billion spent, it still feels as though the club are searching for an identity rather than building one.

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Being a team I knew very little about, and a desire to watch live football, I picked out a match and headed down to the Bescot Stadium one winter weekend.

Walsall is a small town in the West Midlands, near Wolverhampton and Birmingham. Tickets in 2010 were plentiful for Walsall’s League One matches. The price was potentially one reason they were so readily available. An adult ticket cost £23 ($31), which, adjusted for inflation, is £36 ($48) in 2026.

Now, I love football, hence the reason I wrote a book about travelling and watching matches. However, these days I certainly wouldn’t pay £23 to watch a League One game unless I had a really good reason. It was a different time, and I wanted to watch a match at every stadium I could. It’s amazing how, a decade later, I can be so jaded after watching more football than most people see in a lifetime.

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Thank you for joining me on this journey back through the pages of my first book, Soccer Travels. If you’d like a physical copy of Soccer Travels, which came out 10 years ago, you can get it on Amazon. However, if you want to read it for free, then that’s cool too. I’m publishing every chapter at Drew FC.

I hope you enjoy reading Soccer Travels as much as I enjoyed writing it all those years ago. If you like it, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. You don’t get any extra content. Instead, you’ll be supporting independent football journalism and writing.

Chapter 4

Walsall FC

Bescot Stadium

Walsall, England

2010

Tickets to professional football matches in England are by no means cheap. But every weekend stadiums around the country are filled with supporters eagerly shelling out their hard earned cash. One would think that the ticket price to a football match outside of the English Premier League would be considerably cheaper to entice fans to forgo allegiance to the “big” clubs. That’s exactly what I assumed when watching Premier League teams Wolverhampton Wanderers and Liverpool play out a stalemate in early 2010 for a princely sum of £35 ($54).

While I found the tickets to lower league games in England to be cheaper, I was surprised they still weren’t all that much cheaper than a Premier League ticket. In some cases, it was as if the clubs were pricing themselves out of higher attendances, only to attract the hardcore local fans, preventing new ones from being born. Of course, running a football club is expensive and many owners will never turn a profit. But having a half-full or half-empty stadium due to a few quid seems easily fixable by having tickets for a tenner or less. Sure, I have found non-league and semi-professional teams selling tickets for single digits. However, there are some League One and League Two teams (division three and four, respectively) expecting patrons to part with around £20 to £30 to see football.

During my time living in Wolverhampton, I found that several football clubs were located within a short distance of my flat. Of course, there are Wolves’ West Midland derby rivals West Bromwich Albion, who as of the writing of this book, are in the English Premier League. There are also Aston Villa, in the English Premier League but on the fast track to relegation, and Birmingham City, already playing in the English Championship. Both clubs are located in Birmingham. Though success has been short to come by for the teams in the area, Aston Villa did play in the 2014/15 FA Cup Final, losing to Arsenal. However, the area is also home to other ‘smaller’ clubs, including little old Walsall FC.

The Saddlers, as the club is affectionately known due to the area’s rich history of saddle making, have been ridden hard over the course of their history by opposing teams. Walsall have never experienced a day in the top-flight of English football. According to statistics at the time of writing this book, in the 95 seasons that Walsall have played in the English football league system, 71 seasons have been in the third-tier of the English football pyramid. For those unsure what the football pyramid or league system is, I shall explain that now. Of course, I am looking at the American and Canadians that may be new to the football party, wearing their overpriced Barcelona, Manchester City, or Arsenal jerseys.

Throughout history, football has been seen as a game that can be played by professionals of varying degrees. This can be quite confusing for Americans, I know because I’ve tried to explain it to my family and friends often without success, just nodding, smiling faces ready to talk about the NFL or NASCAR.

To make things as easy as possible, we’ll use England as an example. England has four divisions in the Football League: Premier League, Championship, League One, and League Two, with the Premier League being the top, Championship second, and so on and so forth. The Premier League has what would be classified as the elite players, the Wayne Rooneys, Sergio Agueros, and the like. Every season, each team in England’s top-tier of football have their own objectives. For a very few it is to win the league. Others may want to push for qualification for a European competition the following year (trying to explain the UEFA Champions League and Europa League are headaches in themselves when speaking to family and friends; let’s not worry about them now) and some teams just want to live to fight another day in the league and avoid relegation.

While American sports leagues allow the worst teams from a particular season to have the opportunity to choose first in the following season’s college draft (how socialist, America!), the English Premier League punishes teams that finish in the last three league places. Football, or soccer, isn’t the ‘everybody wins’ sport so many Yanks believe it to be. At least not in Europe. It’s actually rather cut throat and the ‘everyone participates’ belief is a thing that doesn’t exist. At least, that is what I have found over the years. Europe and most of the world that play soccer have the fantastic system of promotion and relegation.

In England, playoffs are seen as unfair in crowning a champion. Many times the best team doesn’t win and they are forgotten about, while everyone praises the team that happened to be the best at the right moment of the season. This example has been seen many times in the USA and Canada’s Major League Soccer. On occasions the best team over the regular season does win the championship going right through the playoffs. But that doesn’t always happen. English football, and the top leagues in Europe, on the other hand, do not praise mediocrity. It is Darwinian, survival of the fittest, the weak will die. There are no draft picks, and there is not the same sharing of revenue and money. The best teams will continue to be the best, the worst will continue on unless some significant investment is made, and it will continue on and on and on. This does not deter people or fans from following and watching as many would think. Rather it seems to draw them in further.

Let’s briefly explore promotion and relegation. If Team A finish in the bottom three come the end of the season, then Team A are removed from the league and demoted to the league below as punishment for being bad. They will then be replaced by one of the teams from the division lower that finished in the top three of that division. This system builds brilliant drama throughout a season and if you follow a club that fights relegation, it can be gut wrenching to watch on a weekly basis. Even suicidal.

Currently, the MLS or other “professional” leagues in North America do not feature this dramatic aspect to the league. Rather, the league tries to create drama through the playoffs. The relegation and promotion drama cannot be replicated in this way. One of the biggest reasons there is no promotion and relegation, and probably never will be, is because there is too much money being pumped into teams by owners who would simply pull out all investment if they were told their club were relegated.

So, the Saddlers have spent all of their existence outside of that wonderful top-tier of English football known as the English Premier League, where money from TV contracts flows like wine. In reality, Walsall’s existence has been quite bleak. No major trophies have been secured, though they did win the fourth division twice, and the team have been runners-up to other trophies as about as often as they have won them. It was this bleak existence, slightly cheaper ticket prices, and my love and willingness to watch any type of football; that influenced my wife to buy us tickets to see the mighty Saddlers play Norwich City for £23 ($31). TWENTY-THREE POUNDS!

Over the Christmas holiday season we planned to make the short trip over to Walsall for the game. The weather in the winter of 2010, however, was appalling, causing matches up and down the country to be cancelled due to frozen pitches. Even the Premier League with its underground heated playing surfaces wasn’t free from match cancelations as the mighty Arsenal, with their multi-million pound stadium, couldn’t fight off Old Man Winter. Being that Norwich were near the top of the League One table, I was excited to see them take on Walsall, so on our bus ride to the town centre, I had my fingers crossed the game wouldn’t be postponed. Arriving at the Walsall bus station, we found our way down the street that led to the Bescot Stadium, also known as the Banks’s Stadium. Walsall will never be a town confused with the likes of Bath or York, though I am sure it has some charm. However, if it has any other charm, I am not sure where it was hiding.

We walked about a mile or more toward the stadium or at least what we assumed was the general direction of the ground. The street was lacking signs or anything that would help lead someone unfamiliar with the area to the home of Walsall FC. Perhaps the club didn’t expect anyone not familiar with the team already to attend a match. Luckily, I had consulted Google Maps (how 2010) before leaving our flat. It did not inform us, however, that we would be walking through what felt like a crack den. Something seen out of The Wire. Maybe it wasn’t a crack den and was slightly nicer, but I wouldn’t want to repeat the journey at night. One minute we walked out of the town centre and the next down a street with boarded-up houses, shattered glass across the ground, and defunct take away restaurants lining the avenue.

As we got closer, Walsall and Norwich supporters began to merge from all directions into one long parade of fans headed to the ground. As we coalesced with the other fans, the thoughts of the game being called off were a distant memory and the thoughts of burgers and pies were dancing in my head. Just as my food wet dream was a few minutes from becoming a reality, we noticed a large group of supporters turning away from the stadium heading back toward us. Without the luxury of under soil heating and the glamour of the Premier League to keep it warm, the pitch was still frozen from the night before and the game was called off minutes before kickoff. Despite players warming up and preparing for action, the referee decided to be cautious and the fans that made it out to the game were turned back. Frustrated with the game being called off, we returned to catch the bus back to our flat in Wolverhampton. My frustration would have been minimal compared to that of the Norwich fans who made the three hour, 160-plus mile trip, only to turn around and head back home. The life of a supporter.

A few days later the game was re-scheduled. However, rather than the teams playing on the weekend, the fixture was set for the middle of the week. Disappointed for the second time, as prior engagements would keep me away from the re-scheduled match, and not wanting to see a grown man upset, Katy sorted us out some replacement tickets for Walsall’s upcoming Saturday fixture against Bristol Rovers. Rovers would go on to have some hard times in the years that followed, which included being relegated from League Two into the Football Conference at the end of the 2014 season. The club won immediate promotion and returned to League Two thanks to winning the playoff final at Wembley in May 2015. In 2009 the club hadn’t descended the leagues quite so far, yet.

On that cloudy and cold West Midlands Saturday, Kate and I readied ourselves for Walsall and Bristol Rovers with some pub grub prior to the same walk down Crack Den Road. Unlike our attempt to see Walsall play Norwich, we actually made it to the turnstiles this time. Maybe it was the grey skies or the motorway not too far away, but the Bescot Stadium looked functional and not particularly aesthetically pleasing. Not to say it was ugly, but its focus was more on functionality rather than artistic appeal. Arriving early, we wandered around the outside of the ground. We passed a large 3G football pitch at one end of the stadium. The training pitch was connected to the ground, and had what looked like one of Walsall’s youth teams training on it. Others stopped to watch, too, as the youngsters went through their paces. We carried on walking, taking in the smells of the food trucks, waiting for customers to buy their greasy offerings.

The Bescot opened in 1990 and holds just over 11,000 people. On this February afternoon, it was reported that just under 4,000 were in attendance for the game. Perhaps due to the price. The stadium is not particularly large. It is relatively equal on three sides with the home supporters’ end being the largest of the four stands. It sort of sticks out like a sore thumb with its two tiers. We sat opposite the main stand, which was a quaint, short stand. While it was our first time to see Walsall, it wasn’t the first time for many of the old men sitting around us. These men were the battle-hardened veterans of watching the Saddlers over the years. Looking at them, I wouldn’t wish their viewing of past Walsall seasons on my worst enemy. Years of mediocrity were etched across their faces. They looked hard in a weather beaten way. Their grey hair was down to the stress of following Walsall week in, week out. The old men drank from flasks, pouring themselves coffee or tea into the little cap, talking to each other between sips.

As we took our seats the teams were going through their prematch routines. The pitch was less grass and more mud, especially around the touchlines. The overhang of the stands prevented sunlight in the winter months from touching the pitch, and in certain areas, mud was the playing surface. Walsall’s strikers and midfielders played a game of five versus five keep-ball while the goalkeepers worked on their footwork and handling at one end. Then in a prelude to what I would see for 90 minutes, I watched the Walsall strikers work on taking down long balls while battling against a defender. As much as I love watching pregame warm-ups, a chill went down my spine as it dawned on me that neither team would try to get the ball on the floor to play.

Moments later the match kicked off and my worst fears were proven correct. Ball after ball was booted from the back to the front, with bruising forwards banging their bodies against immobile defenders, ready to return the ball from where it came. It was football’s equivalent of tennis. Back and forth, back and forth. Yet, despite the long ball football, we watched a very entertaining match. Bristol had the best of the chances and dominated most of the play. Though late on, Walsall came close to taking all three points thanks to Clayton McDonald’s header striking the bar. Of course, with Walsall preparing for long balls in pregame, it would have been a header from a set-piece to win it. In the end, neither team could score. The game finished as a draw. It’s no wonder as both teams played the ball in the air for most of the match, and neither carved out many chances to put a shot on target. The draw continued a winless run for the Saddlers that stretched to eight games. I could feel the wrinkles coming over my face, just like the ones on the faces of the old men sitting near me.

Part of the reason for my enjoyment of the match, despite the long ball football, was the close proximity of our seats to the pitch. We could feel the mud being flung from boots, sweat being wiped from brows, and curse words being thrown around. I loved the intimacy of the ground. It was and still is the closest I had been to the action at a professional game as a fan, and if circumstances were different at the time, I would have bought a season ticket. Alas, circumstances were different and I didn’t buy a season ticket; nor did I return to see Walsall play again.

We left the Bescot quite content with what we had seen and walked back through the mean streets of Walsall to the town centre. The pubs were alive in town, something I had not expected. We sat down for a drink and a bite to eat while reflecting on the game. The reflection was short lived, however, as we drowned our Bescot trip in British lager and watched the Six Nations rugby tournament on TV.

Walsall versus Bristol Rovers was one of the last games that I got to see in England before moving on to pastures new. Soon it would be standing on terraces, drinking Hungarian beer and eating sunflower seeds for me.

Thank you for reading chapter 4. Soccer Travels will take you to Hungary next for some exciting football action.

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The unexpected title changed the club’s plans. Rather than focusing on replacing Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, the pair were offered new contracts thanks to their stellar 2024-25 campaigns. In Slot’s second season in charge, however, neither player rediscovered the form that had carried Liverpool to the title.

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Whether supporters want to blame the death of Diogo Jota, numerous players dropping off in form ahead of the World Cup, or unhappiness with Slot’s, at times, laborious tactics, the Liverpool we saw in 2025-26 was completely different from the side that swashbuckled its way to the Premier League title the previous season.

A new era under Iraola

Now, many of the protagonists are gone. Slot was sacked after failing to retain the Premier League title and losing the dressing room. Salah was allowed to leave on a free transfer, bringing his nine-year stay and 257 goals for Liverpool to an end. Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate also departed on free transfers. The former was one of the best transfer signings in club history, while the latter made the same move Trent Alexander-Arnold did, turning down a contract and going to Madrid.

Andoni Iraola was appointed as head coach, having previously been hired by sporting director Richard Hughes at Bournemouth. Iraola brings back the aggressive pressing style Liverpool lacked under Slot. Slot preferred a tactical, organised system built around patient possession, and passing to break down opponents. Iraola’s high-octane pressing game is a throwback to the Jurgen Klopp era.

While supporters loved Liverpool’s football en route to the Premier League title in 2024-25, Slot’s possession-heavy style quickly became stale during last season’s collapse.

Transfer mistakes still haunt Liverpool

Slot’s approach wasn’t helped by Hughes’ recruitment. Liverpool spent more than £400 million ahead of their title defence, bringing in nine players. In fairness, three of those arrivals were goalkeepers, but the scale of the recruitment overhaul was enormous. It was a rebuild after winning the title rather than adding players to push on for more trophies.

What Liverpool desperately needed in the summer of 2025 was a centre-back and a defensive midfielder. Those were the two positions the club failed to address properly. Defender Giovanni Leoni arrived from Parma, but his debut season was cut short by a serious ACL injury on his debut. Liverpool also agreed a deal for Marc Guehi, only for Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner to persuade him to stay until January, when he eventually joined Manchester City.

Instead of reinforcing the spine of the team, Hughes spent £125 million on Alexander Isak on transfer deadline day. Four goals in 22 games were all the Swedish striker managed. When he wasn’t injured, he looked well off the pace.

While Liverpool still need a centre-back and defensive midfielder this summer, the club appears focused on signing another winger. The Reds have already signed Victor Munoz from Osasuna for £34.5 million. Rumours continue to link Bradley Barcola with a move worth more than £100 million, although I don’t see that happening, while Bournemouth’s Rayan has also been mentioned.

Based on the decline of several players last season, another winger won’t solve all of Liverpool’s problems. Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo both regressed, and whether either can rediscover their best form after the World Cup remains to be seen.

Wirtz deserves patience

Iraola prefers a 4-2-3-1 formation, the same shape Liverpool typically used under Slot. The squad largely suits the system, but Iraola still needs reinforcements capable of playing his demanding pressing style.

While supporters are desperate for more arrivals, Liverpool are also expected to sell several players. Harvey Elliott, after a miserable season on loan at Aston Villa, is widely expected to leave. Personally, he’s one player Liverpool should keep.

Curtis Jones also faces an uncertain future. His contract expires next summer and, with a reported £30 million valuation, Liverpool are said to be offering him around. Internazionale have already made enquiries.

Rumours have even suggested Florian Wirtz could be sold to Chelsea to reunite with coach Xabi Alonso. That feels utterly ridiculous. Despite the size of his transfer fee, Wirtz produced goals and assists at times during his first season.

The attacking midfielder finished with seven goals and seven assists in all competitions, including five goals and three assists in the Premier League. He narrowly underperformed his xG of 6.89 and also finished below his xA of 5.17. Context, however, is important.

Wirtz created 60 chances in the Premier League, placing him among the league’s best creators. Liverpool’s finishing let him down. The team scored 63 league goals from an xG of 61.3, but Wirtz was credited with creating only five of Liverpool’s 100 big chances.

The German wasn’t the problem. Liverpool’s slow build-up play, lack of steel behind him, and wasteful finishing in front of him were.

In Iraola’s preferred 4-2-3-1, Wirtz should be the undisputed No. 10, with Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch behind him. If Mac Allister is fit and motivated, he could once again become a key player. If he performs as he did in 2025-26, however, Liverpool may be better served by cashing in.

Questions still remain

Iraola will begin the season without Hugo Ekitike, who continues to recover from the Achilles rupture he suffered last season. That leaves Isak as Liverpool’s undisputed No. 9 until Ekitike returns.

There are still plenty of questions elsewhere. Kostas Tsimikas has returned from his loan at Roma, but will he accept being Milos Kerkez’s back-up? Wataru Endo is back from injury, but does he have a future at Anfield? Stefan Bajcetic’s development has stalled. Is there still a place for him? Chiesa was barely more than a bit-part player under Slot. Will he remain? And what about Joe Gomez, Liverpool’s longest-serving and one of the club’s most respected players?

The questions facing Iraola and his coaching staff are plentiful. It feels remarkably similar to the situation Slot inherited in 2024. Slot managed to deliver a Premier League title in his first season. Iraola is unlikely to repeat that feat immediately given the strength of Liverpool’s rivals.

With preseason under way in Chicago, there is still plenty of work to do before Liverpool open the new Premier League campaign away to Newcastle United on 23 August.

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The former match was dominated by poor refereeing, while the latter produced a victory featuring, at times, some exciting free-flowing football – something that has been all too rare throughout the campaign.

Sporting Kansas City are no longer the worst team in MLS in terms of points. They now sit third from bottom of the overall table, with only the Philadelphia Union and Atlanta United below them.

Sporting Kansas City remain bottom of the Western Conference, however. There is one bright spot. The Wizards are a mere three points behind 14th-placed Austin.

The MLS playoff race is still absurdly open

The truly remarkable aspect of Sporting Kansas City’s position is that the team sit just eight points behind Minnesota United, who currently occupy the final Western Conference playoff place. Even more remarkable is that only 10 points separate Sporting Kansas City from sixth-placed Seattle Sounders.

As poor as Sporting Kansas City were throughout much of the opening months of the season, they remain within touching distance of the postseason. That is the problem with MLS. A team as woeful as Sporting were from February to May can still realistically make the playoffs.

Despite beating Minnesota, it wasn’t a dominant performance by any means. The Wizards had just 34% possession, produced an xG of 1.16, and managed only 16 touches inside the opposition penalty area.

Throughout the season, I’ve written about the team’s inability to get the ball into dangerous attacking positions. That has largely been down to a lack of cutting edge in the final third and spending too much time pinned back defensively.

Joveljic continues to carry the attack

The attack looked impressive, with Calvin Harris, Capita, Manu Garcia, and Dejan Joveljic all receiving high ratings from FotMob. Capita picked up an assist for Joveljic’s goal, while Garcia added Sporting Kansas City’s second as the hosts opened up a 2-0 lead.

Joveljic continues to be the most important player in Sporting Blue. He has scored eight of Sporting KC’s 18 league goals, accounting for 44% of the team’s total.

Sporting Kansas City must soon make a decision on the striker’s future. His contract expires in December 2027, although the club hold an option for a further year. The general rule is that once a player has around 18 months remaining on their contract, a club must either begin negotiations over a new deal or consider selling.

We recently saw the Chicago Fire stupidly sell MLS leading scorer Hugo Cuypers. However, a deeper look at Cuypers’ contract showed it was set to expire at the end of the season. However, the Fire had an option for another season. Rather than try to negotiate an extension to keep Cuypers, the Fire, again stupidly, decided to sign Robert Lewandowski.

The Lewandowski signing was down purely due to the former Barcelona player’s name. He turns 38 in August. His debut was dismal, playing just 63 minutes, managing 27 touches and a mere one shot.

Sporting Kansas City must avoid making the same mistake the Fire have with Cuypers and get Joveljic tied down to another contract.

The missing piece remains a No. 6

For months, I’ve written about Sporting Kansas City’s desperate need for a specialist No. 6. Lasse Berg Johnsen has been excellent since arriving from Malmo in the winter, while a fit-again Zorhan Bassong has improved the midfield since returning to action. Even so, this remains the area the club must address.

There is understandable excitement about signing wingers, but Sporting Kansas City need to be pragmatic. A defensive midfielder isn’t the glamorous addition supporters dream about, yet if the club want to collect points consistently and rebuild long-term fan interest, this is the position that must be solved.

Sporting’s defence and goalkeeping have received plenty of criticism this season, although Stefan Cleveland has established himself as the team’s clear No. 1. Without a specialist holding midfielder shielding the back four, unnecessary pressure continues to build on the defence. Sporting Kansas City have conceded 40 goals. Only Orlando City, with 44, have allowed more.

Can Sporting build momentum?

The rumours linking Mohamed Salah with Sporting Kansas City have cooled. In recent weeks, general manager David Lee has spoken about the difficulty of signing players during the World Cup. While the tournament undoubtedly complicates recruitment, this isn’t a new issue. Sporting Kansas City have struggled to attract overseas players of a high standard for years.

The bigger problem at this stage of the MLS season is fading interest in the league itself. Personally, I’m struggling to stay invested in both Sporting KC and MLS. I’ve even turned down paid work covering Sporting Kansas City because my enthusiasm has dipped.

The World Cup took a lot out of me, while preseason is already underway across the Premier League, Bundesliga, and Europe’s other major leagues. Once MLS eventually moves to a summer-to-spring calendar, some of that issue may disappear. Even then, the league will still have to confront its biggest structural problem: too many regular-season matches that feel largely meaningless.

Sporting Kansas City have played 16 matches and are averaging 0.88 points per game. Raphael Wicky’s side still have 18 matches remaining, meaning there are 54 points left to play for.

From here, anything is possible. Sporting Kansas City could still sneak into the playoffs or finish bottom of the Western Conference. I predicted they would reach the postseason before the campaign began. Whether that happens now is anyone’s guess. I’m no longer convinced they will, and, if I’m honest, I’m not too bothered if they don’t.

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That wasn’t always the case. In 2009, when I moved to England for the first time, getting a Premier League ticket wasn’t that difficult. In fact, there were some matches where you’d see swathes of empty seats, sometimes even when a Big Six team was playing in the Premier League or in Europe.

One night, while sitting around my flat, my father-in-law, Denis, stopped by. He knew my love for Liverpool and, out of the blue, went down to the Wolverhampton Wanderers ticket office and bought me a ticket for the teams’ upcoming match at Molineux. It was my first time seeing not just a Premier League game, but my beloved Liverpool live in a stadium. The game was just days away, yet he was still able to purchase a ticket at face value. How things have changed.

Denis passed away a few years ago. Without his generosity and impulse purchase, I’d have had to wait a few more years to see Liverpool in the flesh. This chapter is dedicated to Denis Finch.

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Thank you for joining me on this journey back through the pages of my first book, Soccer Travels. If you’d like a physical copy of the book, which came out 10 years ago, you can get it on Amazon. However, if you want to read it for free, then that’s cool too. I’m publishing every chapter at Drew FC.

I hope you enjoy reading Soccer Travels as much as I enjoyed writing it all those years ago. If you like it, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. You don’t get any extra content. Instead, you’ll be supporting independent football journalism and writing.

Chapter 3

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Molineux Stadium

Wolverhampton, England

2010

As I walked out of The Little White Chapel, the hot Las Vegas sun beat down on my face. I walked around breathing the dry desert air in a euphoric state. I had just been married by a man that resembled a fat Elvis Presley, which is probably the way he made money on the weekends, to an English girl I fell for in Asia.

Katy and I had met nearly two years prior in South Korea. Friends with my colleague Rob, I was introduced to Katy on a night out at the bars. A few weeks later, a couple more chance encounters and an acquaintance had turned into a budding relationship. At the time, neither of us were looking for anything more than having a good time living on the other side of the world. In fact, we both had rough plans of what we wanted to do next or places we wanted to see or live. But as plans nearly always do, they changed. Now freshly married with plans to settle in Katy’s hometown of Wolverhampton, we spent the remainder of our holiday in Las Vegas enjoying the sun. Las Vegas is 5,104 miles from Wolverhampton, England, but it feels a million more than that. I was soon to make that trip and find out what it was like to live in rainy, grey England.

Four weeks later and with a new UK visa pressed into my passport, I set off for England as it would be my home for the foreseeable future. I was ecstatic about moving to England and after two years of living in South Korea, couldn’t wait to be somewhere that felt more like “home”. Home being a place where English is widely spoken and the food and culture being slightly more like that which I grew up with. Don’t get me wrong, Korea was and is an amazing place, but it’s always nice to go home; or to your new wife’s home.

Wolverhampton is a city with working class roots. The city was a thriving manufacturing centre in years past and was famous for making items such as locks. However, during the 1970s and 1980s the city hit hard times and declined. Coincidentally, the city’s football club Wolverhampton Wanderers did, too. At one time, Wolves were one of the most successful teams in Britain. In their 133-year history, Wolves have had numerous successful campaigns. This included a historic 1950s run that saw the West Midlands team win three First Division titles (the precursor to the Premier League).

Wolves’ good times weren’t solely based on domestic football. In December 1954 with newly installed floodlights and the approval to play matches at night at their home ground Molineux, the club welcomed one of the top sides in all of Europe, Budapest Honved. The Hungarian team contained numerous players from the Hungarian national team including the great Ferenc Puskas who would later become a star for Spain’s Real Madrid. That 1950s Honved team sparks quite a lot of nostalgia these days as they are one of the teams credited with revolutionising football. Thoughts of Honved bring back a lot of romance to the present day game. That night in Wolverhampton, Wolves went on to win 3-2 as their biggest star of the 1950s, Billy Wright, led the team back from a two-goal deficit. According to sources, that glamour friendly was one of the precursors to the European Cup which began in 1955.

Unfortunately after the 1950s triumphs, Wolves were able to secure only a few more major trophies in the ensuing decades: the 1960 FA Cup and the 1974 and 1980 Football League Cups. Since their last League Cup in 1980, Wolves have only been able to win lower league football trophies as the team have been incapable of competing financially with the might of others in English football. The famous club have been a yo-yo side as well, falling down to the third division of English football not too long ago. However, Wanderers have rebounded and are looking better, currently in the English Championship (second division).

Of course, I wasn’t a Wolves fan when I met Katy nor was I a Wolves fan once we settled there. Hell, despite being a big fan of the English Premier League, I was quite unaware of Wolves’ history, mostly due to my timing of becoming a fan of football and partly due to Wolves’ up and down nature. A fondness for Wolves has been acquired, but nothing more and nothing less. My reasons for wanting Wolves to do well these days is actually based on wanting the city to have the financial influx that Premier League football can bring to a town.

Upon moving to Wolverhampton I received a crash course in the football club. From my wife’s relatives to her friends that were season ticketholders, I learned much about the club. Football was everywhere. Everyone talked about it and the city’s team. I didn’t have to go out of my way to find information about clubs, leagues, or scores of matches. This was far removed from the initial education about the game I received when growing up.

As a Yank, it wasn’t easy to get into the sport, especially coming from the Midwest region of the US and for the simple fact that, when I first saw football, or soccer, on TV there was no major domestic league in the US. World Cup 1994 is what first opened my eyes to football despite playing in a community league years before as a child. However, it would be a long time until I truly understood the intricacies of the game. I was only a novice. When mini-satellite dishes became cheap and affordable a few years later, I convinced my parents to buy one. Prior to that flood of TV choices, we had a mere four channels. Unable to get basic cable TV, because we lived in the country, Mom and Dad relented to my pressure and desire to have satellite programming.

Satellite TV opened my world to Europe, as every week we received the English Premier League preview and review shows on one of the multitude of sports channels pumped into our rural Missouri living room. I found football from Liverpool, Manchester, and London through this medium. I saw wet, muddy pitches and players playing a game I had tried to play as a child. But it was nothing like what I was taught. Of the teams I first witnessed, it was Liverpool who drew me in. Whether it was the red kits, the familiarity of the city’s name thanks to The Beatles, or something else, I gravitated toward Liverpool Football Club.

By the time I was halfway through university in America years later, football was more readily available for consumption on TV in the States. It wasn’t to the point it is now where one can watch more football from England in the US than one can in England on any given Saturday, but it was on its way. Those years really molded my life, not just in education, but in the way that I wanted football to be a major part of my future. Already studying journalism and wanting to write about sports, I began to move toward the idea of focusing my writing on the beautiful game. Even becoming interested in coaching it, and not just playing. While American friends followed American football or baseball extensively, I found a niche in which football was my sport.

Living in England in 2009, I can say that in some way, English football 15 years earlier had put me on a path toward the West Midlands. In life I believe that every action affects your life. What you choose to do today will change the path you find yourself on tomorrow. Some don’t agree, but I doubt my life would have unfolded as it has without satellite TV when I was 13-years old. A time I truly found the world’s game and began to understand it. So, thank you Mom and Dad for buying us a satellite dish.

The Las Vegas end-of-summer sun was quickly replaced by a chilly, rainy English autumn. The weather was something I never got used to in England that first year. Nearly every day seemed to be cold or rainy or both. Compounding that, was the fact that Katy and I had just moved from East Asia, where we had worked for private schools that paid for nearly everything. On top of a generous salary, our apartment was completely paid for by our schools. Now in England, I was coming to the fast realisation that everything in the Western hemisphere is much more expensive than in South Korea.

Coinciding with my move to Wolverhampton was Wolves’ return to the English Premier League. The city was on a high. The club had returned to hallowed ground and I would get to see the season unfold in the city.

What would transpire in Wolverhampton was exciting, but for all the wrong reasons. Wolves had got off to a torrid start winning only twice in their opening 14 games. By matchday 22, the night I would see them play Liverpool at Molineux, they were in 16^th place. While excited to be seeing Wolves play, I was actually attending the match to get my first live glimpse of Liverpool. The Reds were at the opposite end of the table and compared to Wolverhampton, had seen much more success up to that point in the season.

“You from Canada?” said the overweight security guard in a West Midlands accent.

“No,” I said, annoyed. “America.”

The British seem to delight in pointing out my accent. The UK being made up of numerous accents and dialects. It’s easy to hear multiple accents from the different regions every day. Yet, as soon as I speak, it is often pointed out, I’m not from around these parts. Perhaps the security guard was confused that a Yank would want to visit the Black Country when California or Miami Beach would be more appealing.

After being frisked by the heavy Yam-Yam, the slang for a person from Wolverhampton due to their own unique dialect, and waved through the gate, I wandered into the Molineux and up the stairs to the second-tier. The crown jewel of Wolverhampton football is conveniently placed near the city centre and is easily accessible from the train station where many of the Liverpool fans arrived before overtaking the city. Convenience wise, Molineux is perfect for supporters of both sides: food, drink, and transport is all at arm’s length, which makes the stadium easy to get to for fans every matchday. A bit ridiculously, but I guess due to the times we live in, an ASDA super centre was built on the adjoining car park; connected to the same complex as the Molineux. For those curious, ASDA is the English version of Wal-Mart, the company that has single-handedly helped and hurt America. The main difference between the two, however, is that ASDA, sanely, does not sell guns.

I strolled up the steps, into the hall past the men drinking small, expensive, green bottles of beer, and out to my seat. Unlike in America, Germany, or some other countries, England has rules against drinking beer in the stands. Fans are allowed to buy and drink the excessively overpriced lager in the concession areas, but they are not allowed to do so within view of the pitch. The English do not do well with alcohol and mixing football with liquor is a Molotov cocktail for disaster. Years later I experienced an away day with some Wolves’ supporters. It was a day filled with hours of drinking, and I couldn’t recall how I had got home when I woke the next morning. Knowing that the men I had been out with all had families and well paid jobs, I questioned why they put themselves through the expensive, alcohol soaked trips every weekend. Perhaps, it is simply a way to get away from their families and responsibilities.

I walked up the steps and out into the open. The cold air stung my nose as I breathed in. My breath was visible as I exhaled. It was going to be a chilly evening for football. After finding my seat near the corner flag, I had a good position to watch Liverpool fire in the goals for the first time. At least that is what I had hoped prior to kickoff. As a Liverpool fan sitting amongst Wolves’ supporters, I had to stay low key: no scarf, hat, or shirt adoring the Liverpool name or badge. Staying low key was fine as Liverpool ended up doing very little on the night to get me or anyone else on their feet. Sitting in the cold January night, I thought about getting a cup of coffee, but with people now filling in the seats around me, making my way through the tight confines wasn’t appealing. The people now sitting all around me were a buzz as this was a Monday night fixture live on Sky Sports. They all spoke in their West Midlands’ accent, some even talking up Wolves chances at the top-half of the table next season. The fans were dreaming. Barely above relegation, how could Wolverhampton possibly challenge the top of the league in a year’s time?

Prior to kickoff, Liverpool sat seventh in the Premier League, as they put together a solid January. Unfortunately, I was devoid of seeing star striker Fernando Torres play against Wolves due to injury. The Spaniard was beginning his decline with the club, and would be sold to Chelsea nearly a year later. He did manage to finish with 18 league goals at the end of 2010, however. Despite no Torres, I did see the likes of Steven Gerrard, Javier Mascherano, Pepe Reina, and several other top Liverpool players that night. In all honesty, however, the match was quite dull in spite of those names. The two teams combined for seven shots on target as it finished scoreless and I felt numb from the game, and it wasn’t due to the cold. To say I was disappointed with Liverpool’s performance was an understatement. I had hoped my first opportunity to see the mighty Liverpool would showcase some of the offensive fireworks from the previous season. But that wasn’t too be. Wolves dug in, played decently, and held the Reds. The travelling fans had little to cheer about as the cold Wolverhampton wind blew into the stadium, chilling us all to the bone. How disappointing to have travelled all that way from the northwest to see a drab scoreless draw on a Monday night.

Leaving Molineux that night, I walked past the statue of Billy Wright just outside the stand of the same name. What would he have thought of the result? How different the Premier League was compared to his day. A helicopter circled overhead as the throngs of people made their way out of the stadium. The Black Country accents were thick as Wolves supporters praised their team’s dogged effort. They waxed lyrically about the team’s chances at a Champions League place for the next season, and the possible transfer targets that would improve the club. I suppressed the urge to slap them and inform them of Wolves’ lack of quality, their inability to do anything remotely entertaining, and penchant for long ball football. I resisted.

Walking home in the cool winter night, I passed the glorious kebab shops that litter the UK and much of Europe now, offering late-night food. There was the smell of kebab meat in the air and people huddled inside, away from the cold to get a bite to eat on their way home. I resisted doing the same. Unfortunately, my wife, a Yam-Yam by birth, couldn’t resist gloating. The mighty Wolves had spoilt my night and she was okay with it.

Thank you for reading chapter 3. Soccer Travels will take you to Walsall next for some League One action.

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I lived in the Seoul suburb of Ilsan from 2007 to 2009. I returned again in 2011 for nearly a year to work in Korea once more, this time living in Seoul proper. What an amazing city it is. My wife, whom I met while working in Korea, and I have planned to visit Seoul as tourists, but thus far have not had the opportunity. It is definitely a city I recommend visiting.

In 2008, I was a season ticket holder at FC Seoul. I spent many weekends at Seoul World Cup Stadium, enjoying the football, sun, and low-priced beer. I fell in love with FC Seoul striker Dejan Damjanovic, whose shirt has pride of place in my collection. Dejan scored 184 goals in 330 appearances for FC Seoul. I got to see plenty of them in 2008. This is a look back at an amazing time, a fantastic team, and an experience watching football in South Korea.

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Chapter 2

FC Seoul

World Cup Stadium

Seoul, Korea

2007-2008

If you said that Japan and South Korea are mortal enemies, you wouldn’t be too far off. The two countries have a difference of opinion, to say the least, that dates back to before Japan’s 35-year occupation of the Korean peninsula. This difference of opinion can range from politics to the history written in school textbooks.

While living in South Korea, this dislike was evident when I spoke to many of the older generation. Working as an English teacher in Seoul, I met more than one person that expressed a fear that Japan would return to the warring nation it was before and during World War II. This inferiority complex to Japan has manifested itself into South Korea regularly trying to outdo its Asian neighbour. Over the years, South Korea has tried to be better at sports, manufacturing, technology and any other competition the two countries have gone head-to-head in.

In 1996, Japan and South Korea, two adversaries and lifelong enemies, were selected to co-host the 2002 World Cup after initially being rivals in the bidding for the event. Some saw this as a way to mend the past, yet others saw this as South Korea jumping on the back of their more successful and developed rival. Notwithstanding, Japan and their delegation were deeply disappointed as they were not selected to host the tournament alone. Rumours swirled of a large Korean multi-national company making payments in return for co-hosting the games. However, that was just speculation. Knowing what we do about FIFA in 2016 and the corruption investigations that have hurt the organisation, it begs the question why FIFA wasn’t probed previously? At the time I lived in Korea, many of my Korean students loved to talk about the conspiracy theories that led to the country co-hosting the World Cup and the Korean team’s success. There’s no doubt a good number of the refereeing decisions at the 2002 World Cup left many fans, especially Italian, believing that a “fix” was in.

When my plane touched down in South Korea just over five years after the 2002 World Cup, I was anxious to discover the country’s top-flight football league. The K-League, at the time, wasn’t too different than the USA’s Major League Soccer or Australia’s A-League; and like both of those leagues, the K-League had had its growing pains. The first incarnation of the competition began in 1983 with a meagre five teams. As Seoul is the heart of the country, all matches were played in the country’s capital. However, over the years, league heads moved clubs to other cities around the country to involve the entire southern peninsula. The K-League was officially re-branded in 1998, but in 2007 it was still in its infancy. At that time, the league possessed 14 clubs scattered about the country. Few big named players graced the competition, mostly Koreans and Europeans or South Americans that were looking for decent pay-offs before the end of their careers.

Even before arriving in Seoul in the autumn of 2007, I had done my research on South Korean football and had chosen my team to support: FC Seoul. The club’s history could be traced back to the early 1980s, though at the time the team were called Lucky-Goldstar Football Club. In fact, it wouldn’t be until after the 2002 World Cup, in 2004, that the club would be renamed FC Seoul from Anyang LG Cheetahs (which they had been re-branded as in 1996). With such a puzzling history, it was completely reasonable that fans would be just as confused as I was when doing my research. Luckily in 2007, I had the internet. However, those early fans, and even the fans in the 1990s, didn’t have that luxury. One day the team you support just moves and changes their name. Where did they go?

In 2004, to go along with the name change, the club were moved back into Seoul city proper from Anyang, which is south of the city, as an occupant was needed for Seoul’s World Cup Stadium. The stadium had been rarely used following the World Cup except for the occasional match played by the Korean national team.

My first experience at the stadium was Seoul’s last home match of the 2007 season. A midweek game in early October, I ventured to the stadium with my colleague Rob after the school day. An Englishman interested in discovering the city’s team, Rob decided to check out the game with me. In reality, Rob was taking me on my first-ever subway ride into a city I had little personal knowledge of. Seoul is a massive city with streets of neon lights beaming into the night. It is quite easy to lose one’s bearings in such a place, as every street resembles the previous one. Korean BBQ restaurants, bars, and massage parlours line the boulevards, and though each are different, to an outsider, they look all the same which causes disorientation to the newly initiated. Taking pity on my naivety to the city, Rob took me by the hand and led me to the World Cup Stadium for my first match. I had been to American football stadiums and baseball stadiums in the US prior, but never to a stadium quite like this. We rode the escalator from the subway station upward and as we emerged from below, the stadium came into view.

My travel partner and I arrived early for the team’s match against Incheon United, a local rival as far as Korean football goes. With time to kill, we ventured into the World Cup shopping mall. Yes, the World Cup shopping mall. Post-World Cup, looking for ways to attract patrons to the World Cup Stadium in light of no regular football being played there (until 2004), a shopping mall with a cinema, grocery store and restaurants was built on to the stadium. It wasn’t the greatest shopping mall, but nonetheless, it was a place to get a bite to eat prior to kick-off and look at clothes designed for the Asian wearers and not westerners. It seems that after the Korean War in the early 1950s, South Korea shunned the ways of the communist North and the country has fully embraced capitalism and consumerism. Nearly everywhere in Seoul, you can find a shopping mall or stores to buy goods; and not only can you shop nearly anywhere, but advertisements are everywhere, too. Everywhere you turn in Seoul there seems to be brightly lit billboards watching over the markets selling socks, baseball hats, or street food. Whether it’s lining the streets or in underground passages that lead to the subway, Korea is full of markets to shop in.

Located next to the stadium was World Cup Park, an area of trees, benches, and concrete for people to congregate in prior to matches. Koreans love concrete and it has become the country’s building material of choice. Buildings, houses, and, of course, small parks are poured using acres of the stuff. While parks in the UK are escapes from the urban jungle that is London or Manchester, with their greenery and fields for young and old to run through, Koreans like their outdoors a little more grey. The concrete parks are the only place many kids can play, if they’re not in one of their many learning academies, as most people live in high-rise apartment buildings. Walking through the concrete jungle away from the stadium, park goers do actually come to a green park with genuine walking trails, trees, and grass. While nowadays this is a beautiful area that attracts people each week to walk, bike, and relax, many may not realise they are doing so on Seoul’s old garbage. The area had been a landfill for years prior to the area being regenerated by the city for the World Cup. The space had previously contained 92 million tons of rubbish. Yet, a spectator at the Seoul portion of the World Cup would have had no idea they were standing on remnants of kimchi and other waste left by Seoul’s inhabitants. Quite ingenious.

The paved portion of the park was linked to the stadium by a curved bridge that would have been filled to capacity on matchdays during the 2002 World Cup as supporters moved in and out of the ground. The bridge allows fans to make their way to the stadium gates by walking over a busy street and gives a wonderful view too, if you stop to take in your surroundings. While the stadium was covered by a flowing roof, outside the arena, apartment high-rises had been built in the distance. It must have been all the rage to buy or rent one of the apartments in post-World Cup Seoul. Compared to other parts of the city, the apartments were luxurious, not so much for their design, but location. The area is peaceful, more rural than much of the city. Although the outside of the stadium had mountains and greenery in the distance, on the inside of the stadium you were cut off from the external world. The curve of the roof restricted your sight and kept you lost inside.

As kick-off loomed, we made our way to the ticket booth, secured tickets for about $10 (£6) to sit in the Seoul supporters’ section and walked into the stadium. As we walked through the hallway into the stands for the first time, I was overcome by the excitement of being there and overwhelmed by how big the stadium looked (66,000-plus seats). That first night, I would become hooked on my “local” team and the cheap prices at the stadium. On that night, Rob and I knew that come the spring of 2008, and the beginning of the next season, we would be at every FC Seoul home match.

In about three years of living in South Korea, I made the trip to the World Cup stadium regularly. This included being a season ticket holder for the 2008 season (the league runs from spring to autumn) for the rock bottom price of $100 (£70). During that season, I would sit through some rather dire football at times, though 2008 was a good year for the club in which they finished second in the league. However, on that October night in 2007, the team were simply finishing out a campaign that would yield no postseason playoffs, a format the K-League used to crown its champion. But my interest was piqued and I counted down the days until the next campaign.

The K-League offseason ran from December until March, but luckily there was international football to keep us warm during those cold winter months. South Korea, who use the World Cup Stadium as their usual home ground when playing on the peninsula, were coming off a third place finish at the 2007 Asian Football Confederations Asian Cup, where they had beaten Japan on penalties. The national team was now gearing up for their 2010 World Cup qualifiers which would begin in the spring and carry on through the summer. With qualifiers on the horizon, South Korea announced their one and only friendly. Of course, with South Korea as my new home and the World Cup Stadium a mere 40 minute subway ride away, I bought a ticket for the game taking place on January 30^th.

The Korean peninsula goes to extremes with many things, including the weather. The summers can be hot, wet, and miserably humid, while the winters are downright freezing. During the Korean War, soldiers suffered from frost bite and other cold related maladies. In fact, the cold was so bad, it is reported that American soldiers had difficulty keeping their weapons working. No amount of beer could keep me warm on this January night. This was, hands down, the coldest I had ever been at a football match. Gloves, hats and parkas were no match for the wind that blew in over the stadium’s roof, slamming us back against our seats. Who plays football in this type of weather? Who’s dumb enough to go and watch football in this weather? Why are there other people as dumb as myself at this game?

The Reds took on Chile that frozen night, and Rob and I positioned ourselves in the supporters’ section. Finding it strange that two foreigners, or waygooks, were attending the game, we were asked if we were from Chile more than once. Apparently, Korean supporters thought it was very likely that Chilean fans would make the trip across the Pacific for a meaningless friendly. Turns out just two English teachers were dumb enough to come out on this night. Chile would win the game 1-0, however, we didn’t see the goal. Frozen and hungry, we decided to leave at halftime with McDonald’s being our refuge to warm ourselves and fill our stomachs. Warmer days were on the way.

As anticipation grew throughout February for the 2008 K-League season, FC Seoul announced a preseason friendly for March against the USA’s LA Galaxy. This was no normal LA Galaxy, rather it was the David Beckham-era Galaxy. The previous year, Golden Balls had landed in the US to massive amounts of fanfare, and in 2007 while living in the US, I was able to see it unfold on TV, in magazines, and on the internet. Though by the time I was due to see it for myself in the stadium, Beckham had been missing in action thanks to injuries and not taking a sufficient amount of time off following the end of the European season.

Beckham’s first season in Major League Soccer was an ultimate disaster for numerous reasons, ranging from injury to the second-guessing of his arrival in the second-rate MLS. The MLS of 2007 is a far-cry from today’s league. Now nine years on, newer fans would be surprised about the way the league was run at the time of the Englishman’s arrival. American journalist Grant Wahl was granted (no pun intended) a front row seat for Beckham’s first season. The book he wrote, The Beckham Experiment, is a fly on the wall look at the disaster. The book is not only damning of Beckham’s entourage’s ingenuousness of MLS, but the league’s amateur nature. Reading Wahl’s work, it is painful to realise this was how America and the teams’ owners treated soccer, as a sideshow not on par with the NFL, NBA, or Major League Baseball.

After the disaster of 2007, the Galaxy’s top-brass was ready to cash in on Beckham’s celebrity in 2008 and planned a Pacific tour with the Englishman in tow. Hawaii, South Korea. and China were all stopovers for the American club before heading back to the USA to kickoff the regular season in Colorado.

Interestingly, Beckham’s pictures were all over Seoul when I arrived in the country, well before the Galaxy had even announced the game. His image was used to publicise mobile phones, clothing, and even soft drinks. I even bought my niece socks with Beckham’s cartoon image on them. Yet, strangely, in many of the adverts, Beckham’s image had not changed from that of the man who captained England at the 2002 World Cup. It was as if Koreans loved that David Beckham, that time, that moment, and they weren’t changing to keep up with Englishman’s many hairstyles. That David Beckham, blonde, blue-eyed, and tattoo-free, that was the East’s version of the West, and it wasn’t going to change.

So, on a cold, sunny March day, FC Seoul and LA Galaxy played in front of a reported 34,000 fans. In reality, the stadium looked rather empty from my spot in the supporters’ end. Though the sheer size of the stadium can make a crowd’s size quite misleading. Regardless of 34,000 or 3,000 fans, Beckham’s popularity just couldn’t make the common person come out in droves like he had in the US months before. In spite of the half-full stadium, I saw the former Real Madrid star play, even if his performance was unmemorable. Reportedly, Beckham was required to play the entire game and he even participated in the shoddy penalty shootout after the 90 minutes finished level at one apiece. This requirement had everything to do with money and sponsors.

Looking back, nothing stuck out about this game except Alan Gordon, a lifetime MLS player making a fraction of Beckham’s salary, scored the Galaxy’s only goal. He then followed up the goal by performing a Karate Kid style crane-kick as his goal celebration, stereotyping the Korean’s in the stands. The match ended one a piece, though Seoul won on penalties. Beckham didn’t stand out in the game, though he did get loud cheers every time he took a corner.

Eight days after the Beckham friendly, Seoul kicked off the regular season with a draw against Ulsan Hyundai. One thing to note about teams throughout East Asia, is that many are named after the company that either owns them or sponsors them. Seoul were part of the LG electronics family, while their biggest rivals, Suwon Samsung Bluewings, were owned by electronics company Samsung. Therefore, the teams not only have a rivalry on the pitch, but at boardroom level as LG and Samsung attempt to dominate Koreans’ lives with electronics. Seoul is now owned by the GS Group, who are invested in numerous areas. One of which is the GS convenient stores which are everywhere in Seoul and perfect for your food, drink, and cigarette needs. When I was a regular at FC Seoul matches, many fans did their pre-match drinking and eating at the GS convenient store located outside the World Cup Stadium. It was a place I spent many hours prior to games in 2008. The picnic tables on a warm late spring day were perfect places to sit and enjoy the Asian sun. Shin Ramyun noodles, Hite Beer, and soju before watching 90 minutes of football were a delight we experienced regularly and something I imagine I never will again.

Nearly every other weekend I was in the stands to see Seoul play. Rob and I quickly got other friends to join us at games. Two became three, three became four and so on, as we made our own little clique and the Korean fans welcomed us in the supporters’ section. In a way, we were like celebrities as rarely did you see a non-Korean going to matches in those days. Or perhaps, I was blind to the other foreigners going to the games, as I wanted to be THE ONLY ONE. Fans would speak to us, take pictures with us and we would all share in goal celebrations. While working in Korea can be oppressive due to the amount of hours that bosses pile on their workers, matchdays were an escape. It was the same thing fans in Europe feel and for the first time, as a fan, I was feeling it too. Over time, FC Seoul matches would become more fashionable, however, in 2008 many waygooks that I spoke to thought the games were a waste of time due to the lack of action on the field. Like MLS in the US and Canada, many football fans, foreign and Korean, held their noses up at the K-League for its quality.

One thing that made these games even more enjoyable during that time was the fact that the stadium allowed people to bring in their own food and drinks. This ranged from bringing in bags McDonald’s, or the Korean equivalent Lotteria, to bringing in your own bottles of Coca-Cola and beer. At that time our group indulged in this practice by packing backpacks full of beer and drinking to excess. Many a game during that spring is still a little hazy at best. And drinking litres of beer before, during and after the game, was also quite dangerous when ascending or descending the escalators in the stadium’s subway station. On one occasion, Rob’s girlfriend caught me as I stumbled back, nearly causing a domino effect of people crashing to the bottom. She possibly saved my life, or someone else’s life.

While the football was decent and the party atmosphere had us coming back for more every home match, FC Seoul had actually put out a very good squad that season. Obviously, finishing second is no small feat, and the club’s hierarchy did everything they could to create fans for this almost artificial club that had been plunked down in Seoul four years earlier. At the time, Seoul had invested a lot of time and money into South Korean international Park Chu-Young, who would be sold to AS Monaco in France that summer. Park would later play, or not, for Arsenal between 2011 and 2014. The club had also developed several good young players that would later go on to European teams. Ki Sung-Yueng and Lee Chung-Yong played that term for the club before making it to bigger and better things in England.

In addition to the good Korean talent on display, Seoul had one of the best foreign defenders in the league in Brazilian Adilson “Adi” Dos Santos, a massive fan favourite. Yet, the object of our affection was Dejan Damjanovic, a Montenegrin striker the club signed in the offseason from Incheon. Damjanovic would go on to have a stellar career with Seoul scoring 163 goals (Dejan returned to FC Seoul in 2016 for a second stint and scored more). He exuded class on the pitch and possessed a finisher’s touch not seen before in an FC Seoul shirt. Why he hadn’t gotten a chance in Europe was, and still is, beyond me. He was as smooth as silk on the field and as a fan, I even created a short-lived Facebook fan page dedicated to him.

Throughout the spring, come rain, shine, or hangovers we were there, enjoying the team, the stadium, and the weather. Over the course of the season, the attendances began to grow as Seoul improved every week. Yet, unfortunately, my regular spot in the stands would end for the most part in August of 2008. My work colleague Rob, who had become such a good friend since my arrival, had returned to England. Now with him gone, the lustre of the World Cup Stadium was gone. Of course, there was still my girlfriend to attend games with, but I had started playing football for a local Sunday league team and the new friendships had me turning out there every week instead. By that time, I was more interested in spending my weekends traveling around Seoul to play football, or watch from the sidelines, than to watch FC Seoul from the stands without Rob. With Rob’s exit from South Korea, I learned something valuable that would happen regularly while living the transient life of an English teacher abroad. Nearly everyone moves on. Life goes on and it’s better to remember those past experiences fondly than to try to re-live them.

Seoul made it to the semifinals of the K-League playoffs by season’s end. The team were set to play a one-off match against Ulsan Hyundai, the same team I had seen Seoul kickoff the season against back in March. Drawn in by a chance to see the team gain entry into the championship game, I made sure I had a ticket. Having drawn against the Horangi (Tigers), there was no sure bet that Seoul would make it through. Waiting on the other side was archrivals Suwon, so a win would set up a tasty derby final. Nearly 26,000 people showed up on November 30^th for the semifinal. It was quite amazing to learn the David Beckham-LA Galaxy game the previous March, had only drawn 8,000 more people.

Seoul looked strong early on, getting a goal from former Auxerre and Nancy striker Jung Jo-Gook before the half-hour mark. Brazilian defender Adi cleared a corner that bounced past an Ulsan defender to Jung’s feet. The striker outpaced a second Ulsan defender to the ball before speeding 60 yards and beating Ulsan’s goalkeeper with a clinical finish. Seoul were in control and the fans’ dreams of a final date with Suwon were coming true. That was until Yeom Ki-Hun scored ten minutes from time as he poked home a goal just in front of the goalkeeper’s outstretched arms. In a split second the air had been let out of the stadium as fans expected the worst to come in extra-time.

Yet, just as fans settled back down for the restart after full-time, that beautiful Montenegrin Dejan popped up, sending Seoul fans into a frenzy. Played in on goal, Dejan scored from a near impossible angle as Ulsan’s keeper was left with no chance at stopping his bullet of a shot. The goals were not done, however, as both teams traded strikes minutes apart. Seoul would have the last laugh as the Red and Black scored a fourth time and advanced to the K-League final thanks to a 4-2 win. The stadium was in pandemonium. Seoul fans sang and danced as the club did a lap of honour. Though I was a part of the celebrations and looked forward to Seoul’s showdown with Suwon, I did not feel as much a part of the supporters as I had earlier in the season. It was a feeling I would never get back despite attending sporadic games over the next few years. I wished I could have celebrated the match with Rob. I wish he and I could have both been singing along, ready to celebrate into the night. But it wasn’t meant to be.

In the end, I was unable to attend the playoff final in Suwon due to having to work on the weekend. Being at the beckon call of your boss is the Korean way, an unavoidable part of the culture inflicted on Koreans and waygooks alike. I couldn’t get out of it, but I followed the match as best I could from a far. Seoul lost 3-2, finishing off a fantastic season one step shy of the ultimate prize. It’s worth noting a reported 41,000- plus showed up to watch the final in Suwon. Take that David Beckham and LA Galaxy.

During the rest of my time living in Korea, I never attened the World Cup Stadium as consistently as I had that 2008 season. Other things became more important and that strong desire to follow my “hometown team” never returned. That desire had left with Rob when he returned home to England. With the amount of time I spent in Korea, about three years in total, it’s a time which won’t leave my mind easily. From the memorable smells to the mouth-watering BBQ, I won’t forget the World Cup Stadium and the time I was a FC Seoul supporter for a full season.

Thank you for reading chapter 2. Soccer Travels will take you to the Black Country next for a match-up between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Liverpool.

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Indeed, I recently booked a 48-hour trip to Sandefjord, Norway, for August. Two return flights on a budget airline cost me a mere £109 ($145). I then booked an Airbnb for £168 ($224). The flights and accommodation came to a grand total of £277 ($369).

By comparison, the price of a World Cup group-stage ticket this summer ranged from £104 ($140) to £8,235 ($11,000). Those prices only reinforce the idea that attending a sporting event in the US is comparable to taking a weekend city break in Europe.

All of this got me thinking about MLS ticket prices. The average ticket in 2026 costs between $45 and $50. That’s a fairly reasonable price. However, the MLS regular season, as I’ve outlined numerous times over the years, can be boring, monotonous, and, at times, meaningless. Still, the average price of a ticket isn’t outrageous.

The last time I bought a ticket to an MLS match was in 2007. It cost a mere $20. Using an inflation calculator, that same ticket would cost around $32 in 2026, an increase of just $12. So, what did MLS clubs charge supporters back in 1996 during the league’s inaugural season?

MLS was created as part of the United States Soccer Federation’s agreement with FIFA to host the 1994 World Cup. According to the book USA ‘94: The World Cup That Changed the Game, the USSF hadn’t originally planned to fulfil its commitment to launch a professional league. Forced to honour the agreement, MLS eventually kicked off two years after the World Cup.

The inaugural season featured 10 clubs in cities including Washington, DC, Kansas City, New York, Boston, Tampa Bay, Columbus, Los Angeles, Dallas, San Jose, and Denver. Naturally, ticket prices varied from market to market.

So, how much was the average MLS ticket in 1996?

According to my research, the average MLS ticket cost $15. Adjusted for inflation, that same ticket would cost approximately $32 in 2026.

How did the average MLS ticket compare with other American sports in 1996?

The average Major League Baseball ticket cost $11.32. Adjusted for inflation, that works out at $24.18 today.

The average NFL ticket cost $40.35. Adjusted for inflation, that becomes $86.18 today.

The average NBA ticket cost $31.80. Adjusted for inflation, that equals $67.92 today.

The average NHL ticket cost $36.21. Adjusted for inflation, that works out at $77.34 today.

Even adjusted for inflation, the price of tickets for the “four big sports” in the US are far more. For example, in 2025, the cheapest average NFL ticket price was $123, which was offered by the God awful New York Jets.

How did the average MLS ticket compare with the 1994 World Cup?

The average ticket for the 1994 FIFA World Cup cost $58. Adjusted for inflation, that would cost $123.88 today.

How much was a ticket to the Premier League in 1996?

Using information from Red11, a Manchester United-focused website, a ticket to Old Trafford during the 1996-97 Premier League season cost just £12 ($16) for lower-tier seating and £18 ($24) for upper-tier seating. Adjusted for inflation, those tickets would cost £24.78 ($34) and £37.17 ($51) respectively.

Not every Premier League club charged the same prices, of course. For this article, I simply used Manchester United as the comparison because they were the dominant English club of the 1990s.

Looking at the numbers, MLS hasn’t experienced the kind of ticket-price explosion seen elsewhere in North American sport. A $15 ticket in 1996 equates to around $32 today after inflation, while the average MLS ticket now sits between $45 and $50. That increase is noticeable, but it isn’t outrageous when compared with the NFL, NBA, NHL, or even the cost of attending the World Cup.

The bigger question isn’t whether MLS tickets are affordable. It’s whether the product justifies the price. Fans aren’t simply paying for 90 minutes of football. They’re paying for parking, food, drinks, merchandise, and everything else that comes with a trip to the stadium. Before long, what started as a $50 ticket can easily become a $100 or more day out for one person and several hundred dollars for a family.

Perhaps that’s why the conversation around World Cup ticket prices has resonated with so many supporters. It isn’t just about FIFA charging eye-watering prices for a once-in-a-lifetime event. It’s about the growing cost of being a football fan in general.

The cost of everything has gone up and people are suffering whether they want to admit it or not. Compared with other American sports, MLS remains one of the better-value options. The challenge for the league is making sure supporters continue to feel they’re getting value for their money as ticket prices inevitably continue to rise. Coming off of the World Cup, where new fans could be cultivated, keeping it cheap may be the best way to attract new people to games.

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Since reports first emerged linking Salah with Sporting Kansas City, there has been a lot of discussion among the club’s fans on social media. I know MLS has been hibernating over the past month due to the World Cup, but let’s remember that Sporting Kansas City are the second-worst team in MLS in 2026, sitting just above the Philadelphia Union.

The club are on pace to concede an incredible 87 goals this campaign, which would be the most in team history. Thus far, Sporting have signed three more defenders this summer: Emir Karic, Moises Mosquera, and Or Blorian, who actually agreed a pre-contract earlier in the year.

What general manager David Lee has not done is add the one player the club desperately needs. A No. 6 is the missing piece that would greatly improve this team. I’d imagine the pressure is beginning to grow on Lee, who arrived at Sporting Kansas City to rebuild the club.

Instead, Sporting resemble an expansion team playing their first season in MLS. Let’s remember this team lost in humiliating fashion to USL Championship side Colorado Springs Switchbacks. While losing to a lower-league club isn’t as bad as it sounds, the manner in which Sporting lost 3-0 certainly was.

A rebuild or a quick fix?

The rumours of Salah joining Sporting Kansas City certainly make me think new majority owner Peter Mallouk has weighed in on what the club need to do. Rather than committing to a slow build, being financially responsible, and addressing the different areas of the squad that need attention, Mallouk, and possibly Lee as well, appear to want immediate change. Sporting Kansas City are a club rapidly losing fan interest. It isn’t anything new. This has been happening for years.

Along with CF Montreal and FC Dallas, I will gladly argue Sporting Kansas City have the smallest fanbases in MLS. This is a club that, in my opinion, doesn’t make the most of being part of two states. Sporting Kansas City’s motto of “One Club. Two States.” rings hollow. There is an opportunity for the club to play friendlies across eastern and central Kansas or down into south-west Missouri to build a fanbase of hungry soccer supporters.

Instead, Sporting Kansas City offer discounted tickets and hope hosting World Cup matches in the city will attract new and returning fans. My question is this: how many people who attended those World Cup matches even know Kansas City has a professional men’s soccer team? Sporting’s social media has also felt lacking this summer compared to fellow Kansas City club, the Current.

I think this job has been much more difficult than Lee expected. Of course, I don’t know that for a fact. I’m not privy to his inner thoughts. As a Sporting Kansas City fan and writer who has spent the last few years largely uninterested in the club, I expected more by this stage of the 2026 season.

I am by no means blaming David Lee. I think he has done well with what has been available. It simply shows how far Sporting Kansas City have fallen. They have gone from being the model of what an MLS club should be to the model of what an MLS club shouldn’t be. I wouldn’t be surprised if Lee’s time in Kansas City doesn’t last more than a few years, if things don’t improve sooner rather than later.

The Mohamed Salah factor

Now, this brings me back to Mohamed Salah. From an off-the-pitch point of view, this would be an incredible signing if it actually happened. Salah brings immediate name recognition to Sporting Kansas City, something the club has never had.

Sporting Kansas City aren’t a club known outside MLS circles. With its generic name and generic badge, Sporting aren’t a club the average football fan in the UK, or elsewhere, is going to recognise or know much about.

For example, my football-loving son wears a Sporting Kansas City shirt out with his mates in Manchester. Not because he supports them, but because of the shirt’s obscurity. In a sea of teenage boys wearing Manchester City and Manchester United tops, teams we don’t support, he stands out in a Sporting jersey. How many times have I been told that no one knows who Sporting KC are around these parts?

For Salah, signing for Sporting would provide a lucrative financial package. It would also give him a degree of anonymity. He would go from being one of the three greatest Liverpool players of all time — Dalglish, Gerrard, and Salah — to being a player who could enjoy life away from the day-to-day madness of the European football spotlight.

If Salah signed for a Saudi club, he wouldn’t quite get that anonymity. In addition, he has lived in Europe since 2012, playing for FC Basel, Chelsea, Fiorentina, Roma, and Liverpool. He is accustomed to a westernised lifestyle, and so is his young family.

That’s not to say Salah is a partier who enjoys the nightlife. Far from it. He is a devout Muslim and a model professional. That is why he continues to play at such a high level at the age of 34.

Why Salah won’t solve Sporting’s problems

Yet, from a footballing perspective, Sporting Kansas City signing Salah doesn’t make nearly as much sense, especially if you’re a Liverpool supporter who watched the 2025–26 season.

For Sporting Kansas City, Salah would instantly become the marquee player. He would also become completely undroppable, regardless of his form. He is a player who doesn’t track back, spends much of his time around the halfway line waiting for passes, and thrives when he can drive at defenders in one-versus-one situations.

The problem is that Sporting Kansas City simply aren’t good enough to carry a luxury player like Salah. The team already has striker Dejan Joveljic, who receives little service and therefore struggles to influence matches regularly.

Having both Joveljic and Salah on the pitch at the same time could become a recipe for disaster, especially if there isn’t a defensive midfielder capable of winning the ball and moving it forward quickly.

Salah’s frustration when things haven’t gone his way isn’t anything new either. In 2024, with Liverpool’s Premier League title hopes all but over, Salah and then-manager Jurgen Klopp had a heated argument on the touchline. Cameras caught the entire exchange, with Salah visibly unhappy and Klopp refusing to back down. The incident came as Salah was preparing to enter the match as a second-half substitute. Klopp left the club just a few weeks later, having already announced his departure.

Yes, Salah returned the following season and helped Liverpool to what, at the start of the campaign, looked like an unlikely Premier League title. It was the best season of his career. He scored 29 league goals and added 18 assists in 38 matches. Salah had a hand in 47 of Liverpool’s 86 league goals, meaning he contributed to more than 50% of the Reds’ scoring.

Unfortunately, the high of winning the league was brought crashing back to earth by the tragic death of Liverpool striker Diogo Jota in the summer of 2025, just days before preseason. The sight of Salah and his Liverpool teammates in tears at Deepdale, as supporters sang, “He’s a lad from Portugal. Better than Figo, don’t you know. Oh, his name is Diogo,” was heartbreaking. As a Liverpool supporter, I was in tears too.

The warning signs

The 2025–26 season didn’t go to plan. Liverpool won no trophies, while an out-of-form Salah caused plenty of frustration. He found himself on the bench at times and publicly criticised the direction the club was heading. Arne Slot was sacked at the end of the campaign.

Sporting director Richard Hughes then bolted for Saudi Arabia. CEO Michael Edwards, so often praised for his squad-building ability at Anfield, also walked away this summer.

Of course, both men came under intense pressure. Spending heavily on players such as Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, and Hugo Ekitike a season after winning the title, only to finish fifth, raised plenty of questions. Ironically, Liverpool had won the Premier League after signing just one player the previous summer: Federico Chiesa.

Salah can be grumpy, and when the biggest star at a club is unhappy, it can affect those around him. Then there is the simple fact that he is now 34 years old. No, MLS isn’t the Premier League. He would usually play once a week, occasionally twice, and he remains in phenomenal physical condition. Yet Salah’s powers aren’t quite what they once were. Yes, he is still better than 75% of players in MLS. But asking him to fit into this Sporting team sounds like an impossible task.

Salah scored just seven league goals and recorded seven league assists in 2025–26. He finished the season below his expected goals figure of 8.12. His possession statistics were also poor. He completed only 26.4% of his dribbles, won a mere 60 duels, and was dispossessed 50 times. Yes, Salah still recorded 187 touches inside the opposition penalty area, placing him in the 97th percentile. However, despite all of those touches, he contributed to just 14 league goals. He also converted just over 10% of his shots.

Yes, Liverpool had problems. Yet Salah looked off the pace and out of form for much of the campaign. The 2025–26 season saw him score fewer than 14 league goals for the first time since his spell at Fiorentina in 2014–15.

The bigger picture

Salah could absolutely light Sporting Park on fire. The problem is that Sporting Kansas City are in danger of disappearing down the same rabbit hole many rebuilding teams fall into. Instead of committing to long-term success and accepting the pain of a gradual rebuild, the club appears to be chasing instant gratification.

It could work. Yet there are deeper issues within this squad, particularly in central midfield, that would prevent Salah from being the player Sporting Kansas City would expect him to be in Sporting Blue. Lee could have a new No. 6 lined up. Salah is simply the biggest named player the club is linked with.

If midfield help is brought in, then certainly, adding Salah could work. Based on the squad coach Raphael Wicky currently has, however, Salah wouldn’t have the impact desired.

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Yes, I hope the country of my birth, the team I’ve supported at every World Cup since 1994, is eliminated in the round of 16. Why? Because we’re being worked. The suspension of Folarin Balogun’s red card, after Donald Trump reportedly had a heart-to-heart with Gianni Infantino and encouraged FIFA to suspend the ban, has left me disgusted with the World Cup once again. I’ll probably be in the minority, but I’m okay with that.

Just when England and Mexico produced the game of the tournament, and Norway recorded the biggest win in its international football history, FIFA and the masters it is serving this summer managed to drag the conversation away from football. The biggest workers in the business are working all of us.

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England’s 3-2 win over Mexico had everything a football fan could want. Five goals, a comeback, a hostile atmosphere, red card, and one team digging deep to prevent an equaliser where all a part of the game.

Norway’s 2-1 victory over Brazil saw a nation playing in the knockout rounds for the first time eliminate the five-time world champions. This is what the World Cup is supposed to produce.

If Balogun had been wrongly sent off, then overturn the red card. If it was a deserved dismissal, then he should serve a one-match suspension. However, suspending the red card for a year sends a different message entirely. It says, “Yes, he deserved to be sent off, but we’re willing to bend the rules for the host nation because the President of the United States put pressure on us.”

Belgium are trying to appeal the decision. But at the end of the day, I doubt anything will change.

FIFA enters WWE territory

FIFA has entered WWE territory, changing the story to arrive at the ending it wants because it believes it will attract the most fan interest possible.

FIFA constantly talks about politics and governments being forbidden from interfering with national teams and tournaments. Yet this World Cup has Trump’s fingerprints are all over it. If Balogun scores and the USMNT defeats Belgium, Trump will undoubtedly hope to claim some of the credit in the post-America 250 celebrations.

Watching events unfold immediately took my mind back to Argentina 1978.

That World Cup used two group stages rather than today’s knockout format. Going into their final second-round group match, Argentina needed to beat Peru by four clear goals to reach the final ahead of rivals Brazil.

It has long been alleged that Argentine dictator Jorge Rafael Videla, accompanied by Henry Kissinger, entered Peru’s dressing room before kickoff, with Videla making threats to the Peruvian players.

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Argentina won 6-0, reached the final, and eventually lifted the World Cup by defeating the Netherlands. It remains one of the most controversial matches in World Cup history. Watch it back today and, to me at least, it looks like the fix was in.

Football doesn’t change because America wants it to

Let’s not forget that Balogun is everything MAGA supposedly stands against. He is a birthright American citizen. Funny how principles change when needed.

Just as aggravating has been the reaction from sections of the American media. People who have never watched football before are suddenly complaining that a red card means a team has to play with 10 men. Others seem baffled that a dismissal can lead to a suspension in a future match.

Rather than accepting the sport for what it is and always has been, parts of the American media and a section of suddenly interested fans want football’s laws rewritten so they can enjoy it for one summer. People who are completely unfamiliar with the game suddenly want its laws changed because they don’t fit American sporting culture.

Can Belgium make FIFA regret it?

The sooner the USMNT is eliminated, the better. The problem is, I’m not convinced Belgium are good enough to do it.

Seattle is the perfect location for a USMNT knockout match. The city has long been America’s football capital. The original Seattle Sounders were founded in 1973, giving Seattle more than half a century of football history. Other cities, including Kansas City, like to claim they are the soccer capital of the United States, but Seattle has the strongest case.

Belgium haven’t exactly impressed during this World Cup. Their 5-1 victory over New Zealand in the final group match secured qualification after draws against Egypt and Iran. Belgium then needed two goals in the final four minutes against Senegal to force extra-time. Touri Tielemans’ 120th-minute penalty won the game for the Red Devils.

The USMNT, however, also enters this match with questions to answer. Their toughest opponent so far was Turkey, and it resulted in a 3-2 defeat despite Turkey already being eliminated. Yes, Pochettino rotated heavily, but a positive result was still expected before kickoff.

The suspension of Balogun’s red card could ultimately backfire. It may provide Rudi Garcia and Belgium with all the motivation they need. At the end of the day, Balogun’s availability could prove to be a moot point.

The United States likes to present itself as a nation of winners. I’d argue it’s become a nation of influencers, trying to get what it wants without worrying too much about everyone else.

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Brown is now expected to become Bayern’s first-choice left-back. His arrival also raises an interesting question about the future of Alphonso Davies. The Canadian remains under contract until 2030, and with Raphael Guerreiro released at the end of the 2025-26 season, Vincent Kompany will now have Brown and Davies competing for the same position.

Davies is likely to begin the new campaign as second choice. That isn’t because his performances have dramatically declined. Rather, it is because injuries have repeatedly interrupted his career over the last few seasons.

A body older than his age

Davies is with Canada at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, yet he has not featured for the national team. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play a World Cup on home soil has been taken away by ongoing hamstring problems. Although Davies has appeared on the bench, Jesse Marsch has largely used him as a decoy rather than risking him on the pitch.

At just 25 years old, Davies should be entering the peak years of his career. Instead, injuries continue to dictate his availability. During the 2025-26 season alone, he missed a combined 24 matches for Bayern Munich and Canada through hamstring injuries, torn muscle fibre, and a lack of fitness.

The average football supporter may wonder how a 25-year-old can already be suffering so many physical problems. The answer, in my opinion, is surprisingly simple.

Davies has already been a professional footballer for a decade. He made his professional debut at just 15 years old in 2016 for the Vancouver Whitecaps. His body has therefore absorbed 10 years of professional football, with half of that workload coming while he was still physically maturing.

Studies have shown that pushing teenagers into professional football can have significant long-term physical consequences. For players such as Davies, those consequences often do not emerge immediately.

Instead, they begin to appear in their 20s after years of accumulated wear and tear. Research has also shown that players under the age of 21 are spending longer on the sidelines because modern football is placing greater physical demands on young bodies than ever before.

Sports science can help manage physical stress, but it cannot eliminate it. If you regularly watch your club’s academy sides, you’ve probably seen promising youngsters suffer recurring injuries long before they reach the first team.

We’ve seen this story before

Not too long ago, Kaide Gordon was one of Liverpool’s brightest prospects. In 2021, at just 16 years old, he appeared to be on the verge of establishing himself as a first-team player under Jurgen Klopp. Instead, injuries repeatedly disrupted his development.

Gordon continued to play for Liverpool’s Under-23s and spent time out on loan, but the injuries never disappeared. After five years and just eight senior appearances, he was released by Liverpool this summer.

Every football supporter can probably name a player from their own club’s academy whose career followed a similar path.

Why Does It Happen?

Research points towards several reasons why players who become professionals as teenagers appear more susceptible to injuries later in their careers.

Early specialisation is one of the biggest concerns. Studies suggest that specialising in a single sport at a young age can make players twice as likely to suffer overuse injuries. In Davies’ case, repeated hamstring problems may well be linked to that accumulated workload, with tendons and muscle fibres gradually breaking down after years of constant stress.

The problem is compounded by cumulative injuries and players returning before previous issues have fully healed. Cartilage wear and tissue degradation also become more significant over time, particularly when bodies are exposed to professional-level demands before reaching full maturity.

Davies is far from the only example.

Michael Owen has spoken about his chronic injuries caused by turning professional at 17. Wayne Rooney debuted at 16 and, although he became a Manchester United and England legend, many believe the sheer mileage on his body meant he peaked much earlier than expected.

One of the biggest recent examples is Ansu Fati.

Before Lamine Yamal emerged, Fati was widely viewed as Barcelona’s next global superstar and Lionel Messi’s heir. Now just 23 years old, he is playing for Monaco, something many football fans probably don’t even realise.

Away from the spotlight, he enjoyed a respectable 2025-26 campaign, scoring 11 Ligue 1 goals in 25 appearances. However, he still missed 52 days through hamstring and calf injuries. Unfortunately, given the amount of football he has already played, further injury problems are unlikely to disappear.

The next generation

A BBC article published in 2024 highlighted just how dramatically workloads have changed for elite young players.

By the age of 21, Jude Bellingham had already played 251 competitive matches. At the same age, David Beckham had featured in just 54.

Beckham, of course, was renowned for remaining remarkably durable throughout most of his career.

The same report also highlighted the growing concern over serious knee injuries among young players. While many people blame artificial pitches or modern football boots, those explanations often ignore the bigger issue: overuse.

When teenagers enter professional football, they are suddenly training and competing against fully developed adults. Their bodies may receive age-specific gym programmes and recovery plans, but sports science cannot completely offset the demands created by too many matches, too much training and early specialisation.

Davies is simply one example of a much wider problem. He has spent a decade competing against grown men while his own body was still developing. Bayern Munich, the Canada national team, and sports science can all help manage his workload, but they cannot erase the mileage already on his legs.

As football continues producing younger and younger superstars, perhaps the bigger question isn’t how quickly clubs can develop elite talent.

Perhaps it’s whether we’re asking teenage bodies to pay too high a price before they ever reach their prime.

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The World Cup break imposed by MLS has likely made others forget just how poor Sporting Kansas City were during the opening stage of the 2026 campaign. There are still 20 days left until Sporting Kansas City takes to the pitch once more in MLS play.

The team’s return fixture against St. Louis City will be a midweek showdown against a direct rival near the bottom of the Western Conference. Three points could go a long way towards helping Sporting begin to climb the standings.

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General manager David Lee previously spoke about making a number of signings this summer. It was indicated that he wanted to make up to seven additions to increase the quality of the squad and create competition for places.

As I’ve always said, it’s going to be difficult to convince players from abroad to join the club. Not only are Sporting bottom of the Western Conference right now, but they also finished last in the West a season ago. Trying to persuade a player who has experienced life in a promotion-and-relegation environment to sign for a club that has finished bottom in consecutive seasons isn’t going to be easy even without promotion and relegation in MLS.

At least one source has already suggested there is a divide in Sporting Kansas City’s current recruitment model. Lee has his way of doing things. He looks for quality players who fit a certain structure and fall within the financial parameters the club is willing to work with. Lee also appears happy to play the long game, gradually improving the squad over time. There’s no promotion and relegation, so there are no consequences, except for completely losing your fanbase.

Meanwhile, new majority owner Peter Mallouk wants players who can improve the team immediately. Mallouk has seen the bad press surrounding the club. He’s read the comments on social media. He’s commented back about fixing the team. He knows people aren’t coming to games.

Let’s be frank, those crowds are likely to get even worse in the second half of the season after World Cup fatigue sets in. I don’t think the World Cup will create hungry soccer fans ready to watch one of the worst teams in MLS. Hell, the NFL preseason will start soon.

Mallouk wants a reaction and wants things fixed immediately. At the end of the day, however, that isn’t how you build a winning football team. But time isn’t on Sporting’s side, and it hasn’t been for a long time.

Lee spent the offseason trying to sign a left-back capable of stepping straight into the starting XI. The club thought it had landed Peruvian defender Cesar Inga, only for Inga to back out at the last minute.

Jayden Reid was then signed after a successful trial and was expected to provide cover for Zorhan Bassong. However, Bassong has missed much of the season due to a reoccurring hamstring injury. Since returning, Bassong has actually looked better suited to Sporting Kansas City’s midfield.

Still needing a left-back, Lee has finally delivered this month by agreeing a deal for Bosnian Emir Karic. The defender arrives from Austrian side Sturm Graz. With just one season remaining on his contract, Sporting Kansas City were able to secure the 29-year-old, who brings experience from both the Austrian Bundesliga and the German Bundesliga.

There is currently no information regarding how much Sporting Kansas City paid in transfer fees for Karic. According to Transfermarkt, however, the defender is valued at around $2 million.

What is Sporting Kansas City getting in Karic?

For starters, Sporting are getting a left-back with significant European experience. He is someone who has faced quality opposition in both Germany and Austria. During the 2025-26 campaign, Karic made 44 appearances in all competitions for Sturm Graz, including matches in the Champions League qualifying rounds and the Europa League. Across those appearances, he recorded five assists.

One Sporting Kansas City supporter commented on social media that Karic is unlikely to score many goals based on his career record of just seven. My response to that is simple: no shit. He’s a defender first and foremost. His primary responsibility is stopping goals and perhaps creating one or two. Scoring them is Dejan Joveljic’s job.

Stopping goals is something Sporting Kansas City desperately need. Only Orlando City have conceded more goals in MLS this season with 44. Sporting’s defence was dreadful a season ago as well, shipping 70 goals on the way to finishing bottom of the Western Conference. As things stand, Sporting Kansas City are on course to concede 87 goals in 2026.

The defensive rebuild attempted during the offseason, which included signing three defenders following successful trials, hasn’t entirely worked. To be fair, the midfield has been a mess for large portions of the season as well.

Injuries certainly haven’t helped a club operating with the smallest squad in MLS. Before the arrival of Karic, Sporting had just 24 players under contract, four of whom were goalkeepers. That left the club with only 20 outfield players.

The signing of Diego Borges has not worked either. Hungarian side Zalaegerszeg pulled the wool over Lee’s eyes, but that is what can happen when you sign a raw defender who had made just six appearances for his previous club. Israeli centre-back Or Blorian is also set to arrive in July thanks to signing a pre-contract earlier in the year. Like Karic, Blorian should bring something Sporting Kansas City have lacked for some time: experience from abroad.

Karic is an upgrade at left-back. He is an experienced player who should provide competition for Reid. His signing not only strengthens a weak area of the squad, but could also help Reid improve through genuine competition for minutes.

Is Karic a WOW signing that will suddenly bring fans flooding into Sporting Park for the second half of the season? No. Is he a signing that should improve Sporting Kansas City defensively? Yes, or at least he ought to.

Karic is not a long-term solution. He is already 29 years old and has signed a two-year contract with an option for a third season. What he does provide Raphael Wicky is another quality player in a squad that desperately needs them. Because everyone knows Sporting Kansas City do not simply lack numbers. The club lacks quality, and that is a much bigger problem to solve.

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As I’ve written previously, I had no idea there was a World Cup taking place that summer. Hell, I didn’t even know what a World Cup was. After watching professional wrestling on a Saturday morning, I stumbled across the match between the Yanks and the Swiss. It wasn’t difficult. We only had four television channels at the time.

Over those 32 years, I’ve seen some memorable USMNT performances. The Algeria game in 2010. The draw with England in the same tournament. The run to the quarterfinals in 2002. Even the often-forgotten 2009 Confederations Cup 2-0 win over Spain. I also remember the subsequent defeat to Brazil after leading 2-0 at halftime in the final. Those are the teams I remember fondly.

Yet, in more than three decades of watching the national team, I’ve never seen an American side play like it did against Australia on Friday night.

Pochettino has changed everything

The quality on the pitch was better than I can remember seeing before. More importantly, the team looked like it had a manager capable of getting the best out of every player.

The press was rabid. The Americans won the ball high up the pitch and immediately turned possession into attacks. As I wrote on Bluesky during the match, this is what happens when you hire a well-travelled, seasoned manager rather than a bloke who spent his entire playing and coaching career in MLS.

Mauricio Pochettino recently said something I’ve argued for years: there are no consequences in American sports. Anyone who claims the consequence is missing the playoffs is a buffoon. If the consequences of not doing well are getting a top draft pick so you can improve in the future, then there isn’t a consequence for missing the playoffs or getting into them.

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Oddly, the statistics didn’t flatter the USMNT’s performance. Looking at the numbers afterwards, you would think your eyes had deceived you while watching the game.

The USMNT managed just two shots on target from 10 attempts and generated only 1.08 xG. Both teams recorded 20 touches inside the opposition penalty area. The difference came elsewhere. The Americans completed 444 passes to Australia’s 219, while defensively they accumulated 20 tackles, 20 interceptions, and won 59 duels.

Those are the numbers of a side working hard off the ball.

Australia deserve credit, too. Their supporters were brilliant throughout. One chant stood out above the rest:

“Just pay your staff, just pay your staff, we won’t be tipping for beers at the half.”

America seems unaware that tipping culture is a uniquely American obsession. People from elsewhere still find it strange to hand over extra money simply because someone carried a pint or plate to the table. Seriously, pay your staff.

Enter Prison-Chic Pochettino

Pochettino has been everything the USMNT needed. He has managed at the highest levels, won trophies, and reached a Champions League final.

He is the first foreign-born USMNT manager since Jurgen Klinsmann. The German, who is more American than German, oversaw the side from 2011 to 2016 and, looking back, I’d forgotten just how much time he was given for so little return. Please don’t tell me about CONCACAF trophies. For the United States and Mexico, the giants of the region, success in CONCACAF is the bare minimum.

Watching clips from training sessions, it is clear Pochettino has a defined plan. There is purpose in his work and authority in how he speaks to players.

He is also becoming one of the World Cup’s talking points because of his attire, which I labelled “Prison-Chic” on Bluesky. It looks as though Nike found old Suicidal Tendencies publicity photos from the 1980s and thought, “Perfect.”

Soon we’ll hear Pochettino quoting “Institutionalized” after matches:

“All I wanted was a Pepsi, just one Pepsi.”

Then again, given the current state of America, perhaps lyrics from “Cyco Vision” off the 1999 album Freedumb are more appropriate:

“It doesn’t matter what you say… it only matters what you do.”

Whether Pochettino needs to be Institutionalized or simply possesses Cyco Vision, this is a level of football I haven’t previously seen from the USMNT. Not with Donovan. Not with Altidore. Not even with Clint Dempsey, who remains my all-time favourite American player.

Through to the knockout stage

Despite their dominance, the Americans should have scored more. This really ought to have been 4-0 rather than 2-0. Still, the three points booked their place in the round of 32.

The Yanks’ opponents remain unclear. At the time of writing, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Qatar, Ecuador, Curacao, Sweden, Senegal, Iraq, Jordan, and Algeria are all possibilities.

There is no reason the USMNT cannot reach the last 16. Sweden, Senegal, Ecuador, and perhaps Algeria would represent the toughest tests on paper, but none of those match-ups are unwinnable. It is unlikely the Americans will know their opponent until the final round of group fixtures.

As things stand, Sweden and Ecuador occupy the best third-place qualification spots. Both would present difficult matches, but neither should strike fear into Pochettino’s side. Sweden were dismantled by the Netherlands 5-1 on Saturday, and Ecuador lost to the Ivory Coast and drew with Curacao. Ecuador must face Germany in their final group game. If I’m honest, I don’t expect Ecuador to be in the World Cup come the round of 32.

Turkey are the USMNT’s final opponent in the group stage. The Turks should provide far less resistance on Thursday night, or Friday morning for those of us in Britain, than Australia.

Turkey have been dreadful. Zero points, zero goals scored, and three goals conceded. Remarkably, they have produced 61 shots across two games without finding the net once. That is the most attempts by any side through two World Cup matches without scoring.

If the American high press continues hunting like starving dogs chasing a bone, Turkey’s goal drought should continue.

Good enough to win it? Absolutely not

If you listen to clueless pundits — Lalas, Lalas? — or certain American television presenters who know preciously little about football, you’d think the USMNT are about to lift the World Cup.

Dig a little deeper and reality appears.

The Americans have beaten what has been put in front of them. That is all you can ask. Yet people seem to have forgotten or are ignoring losses to Belgium (5-2), Portugal (2-0) and Germany (2-1) earlier this year. Those are elite football nations.

Bookmakers currently place Germany and Portugal among the favourites alongside France, Spain, England, Argentina, and Brazil.

Personally, I think France, Spain, or England will lift the trophy, but that’s a conversation for another day. Belgium have drifted to odds of 51.00 after drawing both group games. The USMNT currently sit at 34.00.

That feels optimistic.

History suggests the Americans beat the teams they should beat. Paraguay and Australia fell. Turkey will probably follow. The real examination arrives once the also-rans have gone home and only the serious footballing nations remain. The round of 16 will be the true test for Prison-Chic Pochettino and the USMNT.

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Yes, those pesky three-minute breaks that have been implemented on or around the 22nd and 67th minutes have the football world up in arms.

While hydration breaks have been used in football previously, this is the first time they’ve been mandated by FIFA to occur in all games. It is also the first time that all hydration breaks are a set time, rather than simply an opportunity for players to take on fluids and get back to the action.

Of course, this is America. Capitalism rules. Hydration breaks are not, in fact, hydration breaks, but commercial breaks for TV broadcasters. The cry from the British is that this is further Americanisation of football. This is now soccer — which, by the way, was a term coined by the British to differentiate rugby football from association football.

Channels in the US and Ireland are taking advantage of the breaks to sell ad time. Boos have rained down in stadiums, with fans opposed to the ad breaks, er… I mean hydration breaks. If you’re watching on US television, you won’t know that fans are booing, as broadcasters go straight to commercials. Thus, once again giving people in the US that everyone is happy. It’s the filtering of news, similar to how FOX News ensures its viewers only see what they want them to see.

Meanwhile, channels in the UK are using the time to break away to pundits like Emma Hayes to give tactical breakdowns, which I love, especially because she is doing them old school with a blackboard and chalk. Of course, just like the hydration breaks, there are football “purists” (out of touch men) calling for Hayes to stop giving tactical breakdowns because “women’s football sucks!”

On the pitch, hydration breaks have become time-outs, allowing coaches a teaching moment to alter tactics. In this way, the breaks have been embraced by coaches. Players have also accepted them. Jordan Pickford has said the humidity has been incredible and that the hydration breaks are preparing England for playing outdoors in their next two games.

We’ve talked for the last decade about there being too much football. We’ve talked about the need for better player welfare. FIFA is selling the hydration breaks as better player welfare. Temperatures are over 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit) in many of the stadiums holding World Cup matches.

Have hydration breaks changed games? Absolutely. The momentum shifts in matches have been apparent. Indeed, Australia used their hydration break in the first half against Turkey to stop the latter’s momentum and quickly get a goal.

For small nations like Cape Verde and DR Congo, who were forced to defend for much of their games against Spain and Portugal respectively, the breaks offered a chance to regroup and batten down the hatches for the remainder of the game.

Germany were rocked by Curacao when the underdogs made it 1-1. However, the hydration break killed Curacao’s momentum, allowing Germany to re-take control. Brazil’s Vinicius Jr scored within 10 minutes of a hydration break to equalise against Morocco, who had outplayed the Brazilians up to that point.

Time-outs in basketball are used to stop teams that go on scoring runs. In football, the hydration breaks — or time-outs, whichever you prefer — can do exactly the same thing, killing the momentum of the team on top. Or it can create momentum with a tactical tweak.

Hydration breaks have been the catalyst for goals. According to ITV, there were eight goals in the opening 16 matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the 10 minutes following a hydration break. I don’t believe this is a coincidence at all. Giving coaches and teams a time-out allows messages to get to players and tactical tweaks to be made.

This is likely to see coaches, especially in the biggest leagues around the globe, gradually accept hydration breaks as part of the game. Coaches now become even more important. They get the chance to speak to players during an in-game time-out. Football will become a four-quarter sport rather than a game of two halves.

Yes, it breaks up the game. Yes, I don’t personally like it. Yet football isn’t just for me. It’s for people all over the world. Unfortunately, the game is often marketed towards people who aren’t die-hard fans. It is advertised to people who are casual, on the fence about football. Perhaps adding a break midway through the halves will attract those fans, allowing them the chance to go to the toilet or get a beer midway through a half. Or perhaps just the opportunity to step away from the match and try to digest it.

Football isn’t for the older fans. They are already fans and aren’t going to leave the game. There are millions, even billions, of younger fans out there. FIFA is always trying to find new ways to connect with these people. Rather than make football more accessible to watch by making it cheaper to watch on TV or in stadiums, a variety of ideas have been kicked around and tried. The four-quarter model has been discussed previously.

I’ve already speculated on social media that MLS will be one of the first leagues to adopt mandatory hydration breaks. Indeed, I believe MLS will begin using them when the league reconvenes in July after the World Cup ends.

If MLS makes new fans, which I question if they will following the World Cup, how are those new fans going to understand that there is no three-minute time-out midway through each half? You can’t teach new fans about the game only to change things days after the tournament ends.

There is no debating that hydration breaks in hot weather are a good thing. The debate is over the changing face of football as we know it. The debate is over the history of the game.

It’s like Major League Baseball cutting games down to five innings. Or the NBA adding two additional quarters to make six. Or the NHL adding a fourth period instead of having three. Or the NFL having a mandatory fifth period. Of course, if any of those leagues could make additional money from those moves, they would do it.

Once football clubs realise they can make more money at the concession stands with a three-minute break, they will likely embrace the idea. Sure, fans in England will protests, but as we’ve seen, most of these protests occur but fans still watch.

I believe the hydration breaks, ad breaks and time-outs are here to stay. It is one of those things fans will continue to rail against. Pundits will complain about it. Yet, at the end of the day, they will become part of the game at the highest level.

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